Rare gifted word-learner dogs like to share their toys

Source: Ars Technica

This time around, the group recruited 10 GWL dogs and 21 non‑GWL dogs, all border collies, since this is the most common breed to fall into the GWL category. They compiled a list of eight toys:

• 2 labeled toys
• 2 unlabeled toys
• 4 toys that were new to each dog

What’s their motivation?

Familiarization phase

• Duration: two weeks
• Frequency: once a day for at least 10 minutes per dog
• Procedure: each toy was presented separately.
  • For the labeled toys, owners crouched on the floor, moved the toy, and repeatedly named it (e.g., “Look at the [toy name]! Here is the [toy name]”).
  • Unlabeled toys were presented without any naming.
• Time spent on each toy was equal.
• Novel toys were excluded from this phase.

Testing phase

1. Each dog completed two 90‑second trials.
2. Toys were washed with soap beforehand to control for odor cues.
3. Trial 1:
   • Owners entered first, placed the labeled, unlabeled, and two novel toys on the floor, then stood at a distance, remaining passive while the dogs explored.
4. After a five‑minute break, the test was repeated with the other two novel toys.
5. All sessions were recorded remotely and later analyzed.

Results

• Human babies tend to pay more attention to named objects.
• The researchers expected GWL dogs to show a similar bias toward labeled toys.
• Outcome: All dogs—both GWL and non‑GWL—strongly preferred the new toys.
• There were no significant differences between the two groups in the amount of time spent playing with labeled versus unlabeled toys.
• Conclusion: Simply hearing toy names does not automatically increase a dog’s attention.