Does My Dog Perceive What I'm Thinking? episode artwork

EPISODE · Jul 5, 2026 · 7 MIN

Does My Dog Perceive What I'm Thinking?

from Be Smart. · host Joe Hanson

Viewers like you help make PBS (Thank you 😃) . Support your local PBS Member Station here: https://to.pbs.org/PBSDSDonate Head to BrainCraft for more doggy science! http://youtu.be/OBy3idLwwYM ↓ More info and sources below ↓ Do you ever talk to your dog? Do they ever talk back? Humans and dogs have a truly amazing relationship, developed along an evolutionary journey that goes back nearly 10,000 years. Do they really understand what we say, think, and feel? Recent research suggests dogs know more about our language and emotions than you might think CORRECTION: Chaser is a she. Oops! Meet Chaser the border collie: http://www.nytimes.com/2011/01/18/science/18dog.html?pagewanted=all&_r=1& See Chaser in action: https://www.youtube.com/user/pilleyjw Dogs can process words' emotion separate from meaning: http://www.cell.com/current-biology/pdf/S0960-9822(14)01339-6.pdf Left-gaze bias in dogs and humans: http://www.plosone.org/article/info%3Adoi%2F10.1371%2Fjournal.pone.0036076 Charles Darwin's "Expression of the Emotions in Man and Animals" https://archive.org/details/expressionofemot1872darw Decoding dog barks: http://www.apa.org/monitor/may05/dogs.aspx Have an idea for an episode or an amazing science question you want answered? Leave a comment below! ----------------- It's Okay To Be Smart is written and hosted by Joe Hanson, Ph.D For more awesome science, check out: http://www.itsokaytobesmart.com Produced for PBS Digital Studios Joe Hanson - Creator/Host/Writer Oliver Hanson - Dog Joe Nicolosi - Director Amanda Fox - Producer, Spotzen IncKate Eads - Associate Producer Andrew Matthews - Editing/Motion Graphics Katie Graham - Director of Photography John Knudsen - Gaffer Dalton Allen - Post-Production Intern Theme music: "Ouroboros" by Kevin MacLeod ----------------- Last week's video: Is Santa Real? (A Scientific Analysis): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dCOf6Su0Yvw More videos: Building Curiosity https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=__tPaFaPCHo Why Are Some People Left-Handed? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NPvMUpcxPSA Why Did We Blow on NES Games? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4Gf9mtXnJfM The Science of Game of Thrones - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Utu-LpJn3Is There Was No First Human - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xdWLhXi24Mo How The Elements Got Their Names - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mtg9p6A6xnY Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Viewers like you help make PBS (Thank you 😃) . Support your local PBS Member Station here: https://to.pbs.org/PBSDSDonate Head to BrainCraft for more doggy science! http://youtu.be/OBy3idLwwYM ↓ More info and sources below ↓ Do you ever talk to your dog? Do they ever talk back? Humans and dogs have a truly amazing relationship, developed along an evolutionary journey that goes back nearly 10,000 years. Do they really understand what we say, think, and feel? Recent research suggests dogs know more about our language and emotions than you might think CORRECTION: Chaser is a she. Oops! Meet Chaser the border collie: http://www.nytimes.com/2011/01/18/science/18dog.html?pagewanted=all&_r=1& See Chaser in action: https://www.youtube.com/user/pilleyjw Dogs can process words' emotion separate from meaning: http://www.cell.com/current-biology/pdf/S0960-9822(14)01339-6.pdf Left-gaze bias in dogs and humans: http://www.plosone.org/article/info%3Adoi%2F10.1371%2Fjournal.pone.0036076 Charles Darwin's "Expression of the Emotions in Man and Animals" https://archive.org/details/expressionofemot1872darw Decoding dog barks: http://www.apa.org/monitor/may05/dogs.aspx Have an idea for an episode or an amazing science question you want answered? Leave a comment below! ----------------- It's Okay To Be Smart is written and hosted by Joe Hanson, Ph.D For more awesome science, check out: http://www.itsokaytobesmart.com Produced for PBS Digital Studios Joe Hanson - Creator/Host/Writer Oliver Hanson - Dog Joe Nicolosi - Director Amanda Fox - Producer, Spotzen IncKate Eads - Associate Producer Andrew Matthews - Editing/Motion Graphics Katie Graham - Director of Photography John Knudsen - Gaffer Dalton Allen - Post-Production Intern Theme music: "Ouroboros" by Kevin MacLeod ----------------- Last week's video: Is Santa Real? (A Scientific Analysis): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dCOf6Su0Yvw More videos: Building Curiosity https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=__tPaFaPCHo Why Are Some People Left-Handed? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NPvMUpcxPSA Why Did We Blow on NES Games? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4Gf9mtXnJfM The Science of Game of Thrones - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Utu-LpJn3Is There Was No First Human - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xdWLhXi24Mo How The Elements Got Their Names - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mtg9p6A6xnY Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

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Does My Dog Perceive What I'm Thinking?

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This episode is 7 minutes long.

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This episode was published on July 5, 2026.

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Viewers like you help make PBS (Thank you 😃) . Support your local PBS Member Station here: https://to.pbs.org/PBSDSDonate Head to BrainCraft for more doggy science! http://youtu.be/OBy3idLwwYM ↓ More info and sources below ↓ Do you ever talk to...

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