Do you think dogs have a concept of time?

[Krystee]

I don't know if this has ever been discussed here but I was just reading an article on Time.com called "The Secrets Inside Your Dog's Mind" and it made me start thinking about this...

I have always heard that dogs have no concept of time but I've never believed that. If I walked out to the mailbox and came back inside, my dogs would hardly notice but if I were to leave for a few hours they would be much more excited to see me when I came back. If I went on vacation for days, they would be even more excited when I came back. What is your opinion on this?

[LuvtheCooper]

I don't know either, but it seems to me they do, because mine knows every evening when it is time for my husband to come home and they are waiting and listening.

I also had a poodle growing up, that used to go sit in the window when it was time for me to get home from school. My mom said every school day at 3:15 she went to get into that window.

One other thing, Cooper my little boy doesn't mind if I am gone for a few hours, but if I leave for a couple days or overnight he gets mad at me every time. When I get home he growls at me and won't come to me (although you can tell he wants to really bad). He stays mad for a good couple of hours before he will have anything to do with me. He never does this with anyone but me...and I have to be gone at least overnight for him to act like this.
It makes me really sad every time he does it...but my husband says it just cause he loves me so much...so I try to remember this and not be sad.

[BaxtersMommy]

I think they do. Mine know exactly when it is nap time during the day!

[chachi]

Mine know what time we feed them so does the cat

[JeanieK]

I do not believe that they have a concept of how much time has passed, but I do believe that they know what time of day it is.

[chattiesmom]

I definately believe that they have a concept of WHEN things are supposed to happen - like when you get home, when they eat, when you normally leave, etc. Why else would your baby wake you up at the "regular getting up time" on weekends and during vacation?

I read a very interesting article some time back suggested many of our furkids behavior problems, chewing especially, had to do with their very accurate internal clock. They would expect something to happen such as you getting home from work, and if you were late, the dog would get anxious and work off the anxiety by chewing. I can't remember where I read the article, but portions of it stuck with me.

[yorkie mad]

I believe they do. Our last dog Jessie EVERY night at 10pm got up and laid in her bed as if to say I know your going to bed now. Once our clock had stopped at 9.30 and she had got up to bed and I said its only 9.30 Jess but reailized the clock had stopped and it was in fact 10.00.

[Christinee]

Mine gets me up every morning at about 7am if I'm not already up.....

[bonita14]

i believe they do too.. because when my furbabies daddy is coming home they know they just start looking in the window and smell around out of nowhere one of them start barking thats when i know he is close by the bustop or something because like 5 min later there he is.. i really believe they know hthe time when things are going to happen they just know

[livingdustmops]

Without a doubt...what I don't think they have is a calendar of time....Sunday to Sunday....1 month, 2 months, 3 months...etc but somehow they have internal clocks to know fall is coming etc..

[Princes mom]

Absolutely!! Prince knows when his daddy should be home.

[Yorkiedaze]

Of course they know when it's time for certain things, they have hidden watches I think. They are also mind readers. If I even "think" about going out the door, they "know" it. A couple of minutes before bedtime, they stand at the door for their last potty break. When it's time for breakfast, they start purring or barking at me, when we travel, they start getting excited just as soon as we pull into the motel parking lot, (figure that one out), when we go to play dates which is 15 miles from here, they go nuts just as soon as we are close, but yet we can pass that exact same area when we are going somewhere else and they don't make a peep. It goes on and on with my three and I love every minute with them.

[chattiesmom]

Originally Posted by Yorkiedaze

Of course they know when it's time for certain things, they have hidden watches I think. They are also mind readers. If I even "think" about going out the door, they "know" it. A couple of minutes before bedtime, they stand at the door for their last potty break. When it's time for breakfast, they start purring or barking at me, when we travel, they start getting excited just as soon as we pull into the motel parking lot, (figure that one out), when we go to play dates which is 15 miles from here, they go nuts just as soon as we are close, but yet we can pass that exact same area when we are going somewhere else and they don't make a peep. It goes on and on with my three and I love every minute with them.

Donna, thank you so much for your thoughtful post. I absolutely believe that the girls are actually reading very subtle body language. In the example you gave about thinking about going out.... if you think about going out your body reacts to that thought with subtle changes in stature that the girls read. Who knows, you may even emit a different scent that they are picking up on. Our furkids are absolutely incredible with their ability to "read us like a book".

[inabowbina]

i think they do. They know when its morning and when its time to get up they know what times they are fed and begin to get excited like a hour before i feed them. they know when i get home from work and when my boyfriend gets home they will look out the window around 4 and 5 to see if we are pulling up. and they know what time we normally go to bed. so they have to some concept of time.

[scrapindee]

I think dogs do have a sense of time. When we go away for the day, they are lined waiting for us when we get in the driveway. When we come back from a trip or a dog show, the dogs are excited to see us, but then they seem to pout for an hour or so, until everyone is back to regular routines.