For some dogs, picking up the names of new toys is as easy as listening in on human conversation 1. Typical family dogs can understand action words such as ‘sit’, but not words that describe objects.

The study involved pups like Miso, a 6-year-old male border collie from Canada who knows the names of about 200 toys. Veronica Suen Eavesdropping on their owners seems to help some highly gifted dogs ...