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Australian Shepherd uses talk buttons as a creative way to warn family of laundry disaster

"Always listen to your dog."

@letsgoripley/TikTok, used with permission

What a smart doggo.

Speech-language pathologist Christina Hunger and her dog Stella were the first to experiment with talking buttons in 2019. Since then there has been a surge of online content showing other pet parents using similar kits to communicate with their own pups.

The most fascinating aspect of this phenomenon is the question of whether or not canines are able to understand full-blown complicated sentences beyond “treat” and “outside.”

While the overall jury is still out on that, scientifically speaking, dogs like Ripley seem to make an incredibly compelling case for believing the hype.

The Australian Shepherd has an entire TikTok account documenting his impressive talk button journey, but a video posted on March 28, 2024, feels next-level.

In the clip, Ripley presses the “smell” button as his parents eat lunch. When that doesn’t get their attention, he begins to bark.

“What do you smell?” a voice finally asks. To which Ripley replies “outside,” followed by “gardens.”

Confused, someone asks, “It smells like the gardens outside?”

Ripley’s parents had apparently just started a load of laundry before making lunch, and the detergent had been spilling all over the floor from the washing machine. Ripley had been smelling the detergent, which was reminiscent of the gardens outside.

Unfortunately, they didn’t put two and two together until after they went back to the laundry room. Hence the moral of the story: “You should always listen to your dog.”

@letsgoripley He’s so freakin’ smart! #Talkingdog #letsgoripley #ripleytalks #fluentpet #australianshepherd #dogs ♬ original sound - Ripley the Australian Shepherd

Ripley’s amazing feat prompted lots of praise from viewers.

“All of the treats,” one person wrote.

Another added, “I’ve said this before and I’ll say it again, he is brilliant.”

Others were quick to compliment the breed. And rightfully so, as Australian Shepherds are known for their remarkable intelligence, as well as their strong drive and exuberance, according to the American Kennel Club. They thrive when they have a job, and the way Ripley jumped into action is a pretty great example of this characteristic.

So, while we might not have definite evidence for the efficiency of talk buttons, one thing remains abundantly clear—our dogs are trying to communicate with us in whatever way they can. All we need to do is listen.

Check out even more of Ripley's talk button shenanigans on TikTok.


This article originally appeared on 5.7.24

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Golden Retriever learns to play piano like a pro, thanks to dad's amazing editing skills

But wait. Did he really learn to play piano?

@aguyandagolden/TikTok

All of their videos are so well done.

If you’re not following Jonathan Lower and his golden retriever Teddy on their @aguyandagolden TikTok channel, you’re missing out on some grade A wholesome entertainment.

According to an interview with Fox, Lower noticed that audiences were more interested in videos of Teddy than his regular videos home improvement projects. So Lower gave the people what they wanted—extremely well edited skits, all with Teddy as the star. And now, they are both full-time content creators.

To give you a taste of what they do, Lower recently posted a video of Teddy revealing some pretty impressive piano playing skills.

In the clip, Lower drops Teddy off at grandma’s for the day, where Teddy is so moved by grandma’s piano rendition of “Beauty and The Beast” that he sheds a single tear.

As soon as grandma leaves, Teddy begins tinkering at the keys, and even pulls up a Youtube tutorial for piano playing. Teddy’s hard work pays off too, because by the time Lower gets back, he’s able to play “Colors of the Wind” like it’s nothing!

Watch:

@aguyandagolden My dog learned how to play the piano! #dog #goldenretriever #dogsoftiktok ♬ original sound - AGuyandAGolden

That wide shot at the end is particularly cool. It really does look like Teddy has turned into Beethoven. The composer, not the movie dog.

Needless to say, people were blown away by Teddy’s talent.

“Johan Sebastian Bark,” one person commented.

Another wrote, “Wow Teddy is a fast learner. When is he going on tour?”

Another just commended Teddy’s acting chops, saying he “should have his own movie.” We are past due for another movie series starring a gifted dog.

Of course, Teddy might be too busy to film, as he’s already taken on other jobs, including electrician, caped crime fighter and “dogtor.” On the bright side, Lower told Fox that they still have plenty of skit ideas to bring to life.

“I have a notebook at home with about 500 to 600 video ideas,” he said. "A lot of them are ambitious and they might take a little bit of time to come to fruition but we think of a lot of short hitting ones and easy ones that we can do now and we knock those out.”

To not miss any of those videos, be sure to follow Lower and Teddy on TikTok.

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Dog mom has the most random phone conversation that adorably captures her dog's attention

This nonsensical conversation has the puppy ready for tacos...now!

HrtWarming|Facebook

Dog mom's random conversation has dog on edge of his seat

Dogs are constantly listening even if we don't know it. Their little ears perk up anytime they hear something suspicious or tilt their heads trying to understand what's being said. Some dog owners avoid saying words like "walk," "ride" or "treat" in front of their dogs because they know it will get the dogs overly excited.

One dog mom decided to test her luck by holding a fake phone conversation while her dog was nearby and it was shared to social media by HrtWarming. The conversation was about as nonsensical as it could get because no one else was on the other end of the phone.

"Yeah, did you get the treats? Well, he specifically wanted peanut butter. Yeah. Peanut butter treats. Yeah because we're going to go for a ride later," She says. "I think we're going to go for a ride and go to daycare. Camp. Yeah."

At this point the dog is pretty invested in the conversation as he keeps tilting his head from side to side but as the random conversation goes on, he gets more excited.

The dog mom starts saying some familiar names from either doggy daycare or playdates. He was fully invested at that point. By the sounds of the conversation, he's in for a pretty busy day of eating treats, going to doggy daycare, visiting several dog buddies and his grandma. The head tilts as he figures out if he needs to go get his own leash are hysterical. In the end it was the mention of tacos that sent him running to the door even though he doesn't know what a taco is according to his mom. Commenters thought his reactions were adorable.

"I love watching the dogs reaction.,and the way he move his head, so cute," someone says.

"This is just too funny but dogs actually do know what you're talking about especially your key words walk treats grandma and the dogs that she her does she knows and this is hilarious thank you for sharing brought my day up," another commenter writes.

"It’s time you make him a taco! I love watching his face with each word he understood. So cute," someone else writes.

If one thing is clear from this video it's that he really likes a dog names Sarah and wants to try some tacos ASAP. See his adorable expressions below:

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Human has some critiques for her dog's adorably stoic comforting style

She’s clearly doing her best.

Furry Tails|Facebook

Woman critiques her dog's unique comforting style

Sometimes you just need a little snuggle from your four-legged friend to make everything right in the world again.

Everyone knows that cats are a bit fickle in this area, their comfort is dependent on how annoyed they are with your existence that day. But dogs? Everyone can attest that no matter what kid of day you've had, your dog will be there with their tail wagging while covering you in dog food flavored kisses.

They seem to be much more invested in your happiness than cats. So, when you're feeling down, your doggo is likely to sense it and snuggle up right in your lap hoping to bring you comfort. But apparently some dogs were absent that day in how to be a dog school and they missed the lesson.

This adorably hilarious video of a very serious dog trying to console her human who seems to have nothing but complaints about her efforts is a must watch. The poor dog sits stiff with a straight face and a paw placed on her owner's shoulder as she sits on the floor critiquing the dog's style of comfort. Maybe in a past life Queen Charlotte from "Bridgerton" was his mother only offering sorrows sorrows and prayers for consoling? Anything's possible.

Go Away Queen GIF by NETFLIXGiphy

Look, she's trying, terribly, but she's trying and that's much more than cat owners can say when their cats are in a mood. Check out the video below shared by Furry Tails and tell that sweet girl that she's doing a good job. She gets an A for effort.

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