Every dog owner wishes they could read their pet's mind and know exactly what they're thinking. One woman has cracked the code to communicating with her pooch - and says you can easily teach your pup to 'talk' too.
Alexis Devine trained Bunny the poodle cross to talk as a puppy and she's been chatting to her ever since, in a rather unusual way. From sharing her dreams to requesting playtime and letting Alexis know when something is wrong, Bunny can say just about anything.
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Alexis told the Mirror : "In the last three years, she's been able to communicate some pretty amazing things. Like when she had a foxtail stuck in her paw, or an ear infection.
"She's able to ask about people and animals that aren't present. She's seemingly talked about dreams, and ventured into a somewhat existential realm.
"And of course she can simply request a cuddle or some playtime."
Incredibly, Alexis taught Bunny how to talk to her using a special button board with approximately 100 buttons.
The smart pooch simply presses a button to show her likes, dislikes and emotions, or when she has a question.
Alexis, who works as an art designer in Seattle, US, explained: "I've been using buttons with Bunny from the moment we brought her home at eight weeks old.
"My goal has always been to communicate with her in as many ways as possible in order to facilitate the closest relationship possible.
"She's even coined several of her known terms; Settle sound (be quiet), Sound walk (talk), Water hippo (seal), and many more. The sky's the limit."
Alexis describes Bunny as very clever, quite sensitive and "sweet and spicy". She is extremely bonded to her people and fairly anxious around others.
The dedicated dog owner explains that button communication will vary from owner to owner, but "the foundation is trust".
"You need a solid understanding of your learner's intrinsic communications, their likes and dislikes. You'll want to choose words that are specific to your relationship, and to their interests," Alexis furthered.
So whilst one dog may be obsessed with a frisbee, another might prefer lounging on a specific sofa.
But for your dog to talk to you, you've got to talk to them - and regularly.
"Frequently exposing your learner to the words they'll be using will help them build associations; talk to them!" Alexis says.
"You'll want to press the buttons yourself so your learner gets a visual example of what you'd like them to do.
"If they have a hard time understanding what to do with the button, paw targeting tutorials can be quite helpful in encouraging them to use their paws to explore."
Alexis shares Bunny's impressive work on TikTok @WhatAboutBunny, where they've racked up more than eight million followers worldwide.
The duo use FluentPet's HexTile system to regularly communicate, and Alexis says the secret to cracking the technique is "patience and lots of positive reinforcement".
Do you have a dog story to share? Email nia.dalton@reachplc.com.
