Have you ever experienced this situation? When your dog is playing happily, no matter how much you call, they don’t seem to hear you. But, as soon as you have food in your hand, suddenly, they can hear you loud and clear! Especially when you’re outside, and they meet a good doggie friend—it’s as if the whole world disappears, and only the two of them exist. They’re having so much fun, and no matter how much you call, they just don’t seem to listen! But, as soon as you turn to leave, suddenly, they can see you and follow right along. Is it that your dog is just too caught up in playing to hear you? I’ve realized that’s not the case. When I talk to Sunny, asking it to fetch a toy, if it doesn’t want to play, it just stands there, motionless. At first, I thought it didn’t understand. But then, one time, I asked it to bring the food on the mat and place it in my hand. It immediately did just that, and let me feed it. Turns out, dogs have their little tricks! Pretending not to hear is often because of these reasons.
-
Pretending Not to Hear to Stall for Time
When playing outdoors, dogs often pretend not to hear in order to extend their playtime. After all, time outdoors is precious! Especially when they encounter something they find fascinating, like sniffing a strong scent. No matter how much you call them to move on, they won’t budge. It’s only when you turn to leave that they’ll decide to follow you. This behavior is a way for dogs to “pretend they can’t hear” in order to maximize their enjoyment and get more free time.
-
Selective Response
Dogs clearly have preferences when it comes to commands, and they respond more readily to those that benefit them. For instance, when you say “Let’s go out,” those three words are incredibly enticing to them, and they’ll immediately respond. But when you say “bath,” not only will they ignore you, but they’ll also try to hide. Sunny, for example, doesn’t need to hear the word “bath”—the moment it sees me grab its towel, it’s already running away. It either hides in its bed or comes to hide next to me!
-
Challenging Your Authority
When you give a command and your dog looks at you sideways, with its tail slowly wagging back and forth, it’s not just stalling for time—it’s testing your boundaries, challenging your authority in the household. As the owner, you must stick to your commands, or else your dog might start seeing itself as the boss and try to take charge. Dogs are very good at weighing pros and cons. If following your command results in a reward, they’ll happily obey. But if there’s no reward, they’ll often pretend not to hear. They only listen when there’s something in it for them.
Does your dog also pretend not to hear you?
