|
Home 
Science
& Technology
Dog Barks May be Tailored to Humans
Dog Barks May be Tailored to Humans
A recent study suggests that the tone of a dog's bark
may have developed over thousands of years specifically
for humans.
by Steve Johnson, staff
June 10, 2004
If you have ever been able to listen to your dog bark and
know what he or she is thinking of, it have less to do with
knowing your dog, and more to do with human traits.
A team of Hungarian scientists claim that dogs can control
variations in their barking to convey emotions or messages
that humans can understand.
Published in a recent
article of The Herald newspaper, are the accounts of an
experiment led by scientist Adam Miklosi at Eotvos Lorand
University in Budapest, Hungary.
The experiment included a breed of dogs called Mudis, a type
of Hungarian herder known to be very vocal. The dogs were
placed in certain situations, such as confronting an intruder,
anticipating being fed, playing with other dogs, among others,
and their barks were recorded.
Several people were then brought in, and separated into three
groups, one being Mudi owners, another being dog owners of
other breeds, and the other being those who never owned dogs.
When each person listened to the dog barks, they were able
to identify each bark with the correct situation with a 45%
accuracy rate.
Miklosi believes that the bark of dogs evolved over thousands
of years into a form that humans can easily understand.
|
