Dogs might be able to "listen in" on human speech

A new study has shown that canines have the neurological ability to pick out information that is relevant to them when humans are talking.

Pooches can do this when keywords, like their name, are contained within wider conversation and when a person is not directly engaging with them.

The study involved about 50 dogs from numerous breeds and challenges the idea that the animals are only responsive to familiar words spoken in 'baby talk' tones.

The experts suggest that this could be a result of human domestication, but recommend conducting similar tests on wolves and other wild species to see if they have the same abilities.

David Reby, lead author of the study at the University of Sussex, said, "Our research shows that dogs are able to pick out and recognise words relevant to them in a monotonous stream of otherwise irrelevant speech, even in the absence of the intonation cues we usually use to engage them."

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