Time

[fergie11]

They say dogs don't know time - like if you were gone for 1 hr. or for 5 days. Do you think that's true? I'm gone 3-4 hours at a time a lot and Fergie is happy when I get home. This week I was gone for 5 days. When I came to pick her up she was absolutely crazy -- Very, very glad to see me, even though I know she was happy where she stayed. Do you think they know time?

[Doris]

I really think they know time. Bodi starts moving around in his crate about 10 minutes before my alarm goes off. (I no longer can hit the snooze!) He knows the routine of things, but also can tell when it is time for the family to return home from school. The best part is that he is so happy to see us! Don't feel guilty - especially if you know he is well taken care of while you are gone.

[Teri]

I think they know time for sure. My dog get really excited when I come home from work and copes very well alone in my apt for 8-10 hours. But if I go away for a few days and leave him with my friends or my boyfriend he goes crazy when he sees me and he actually had diarrhea went I went away for a week. He has stress colitis.....he knows when I'm gone for a long time for sure.

[Leslie, Dexter & Kirby]

I think they know what time it is, but I don't think they understand duration. For example, on weekends, Dex starts crying for dinner by 4:30 pm. However if we leave for 1 hr or 8 hrs they greet us with the same enthusiasm.

[Liza, Halle and Finn]

Well, THEY may say they don't know time, but then how do you explain that my Kachi wakes me up every morning between 6:08 and 6:13 by licking me on the face. And the funny part of it is sometimes I wake up earlier, and just lie there watching him. He's already awake at the end of the bed, and as soon as it gets past 6:00am, he moves closer and closer to my head until it's time for my good morning lick... I haven't set my alarm clock since we brought him home in April!

But on the other hand, we boarded him over night one time last month, and when we came to pick him up, he was really happy to see us, but no more so than he is when we come in to the house after going out to pick up the newspaper!! He always acts like we've been gone for ages, and he grunts, groans & does his wiggle-butt dance!

[Adina P]

I'm not sure....it's hard to tell if their apparent ability to "tell time" has to do with dogs' super duper understanding of routine or an actual understanding of time itself. I think a dog can know 'it's time to get up' without really knowing it's been 8 hours since bedtime. Suppertime for my dogs is 5pm, but they ALWAYS start following me around begging for food about an hour in advance. So sometimes I feed them earlier to get them to chill out and stop the begging. So they know the general time frame of meal time. But I'm not sure they really understand the passing of time and when its been a short time or a long time. One thing that MIGHT be happening when an owner is gone days and days is that they notice their routine disrupted along with your absence and that makes them nervous. But who knows?

[Sandy (Rorie & Riley's Mom)]

I think dogs know time. My two go sit at the front window about 10 minutes before the kids get home. Rorie will also start badgering us when it's time for her Kong at night, even if our routine is different. On weekends, she will come lick my husbands face at about the time he would normally get up during the week.

I've also noticed how crazy the doodles get if my husband has to go out of town for a few days. When he comes home, they are off the wall. Then they will also follow him around for a couple hours, like they don't want to let them out of their site.

[Ali]

Obviously everyone has a different view. So I will tell you mine. I do believe dogs understand time within days... so if your gone for a couple of days or a week they know. But I think it is different when you are only gone for a few hours and leave them at home. This is why: What do dogs do when you are away most of the time? Sleep! I love sleeping and when I sleep time goes by so much faster. What seems like minutes is actually a couple of hours. So when you are gone for 4 hours to 8 hours, they really don't know the difference. They do know the difference between days though because like all animals they have biological clocks, they know when it's bedtime, breakfast, dinner, etc. if it is done at the same time everyday. They will know when you are not their for these daily events.

[Sue & Willy Babe]

I think they know time also if I am late in getting home Willson will start looking at the door, I do feel guilty if I am a little late because I really miss my doodle during the day and can't wait to see him at night time. And in them morning If i am not down the stairs by a certain time he will come up even if DH is scratching his ears!!! And if I too haven't fed him yet he lays by his dish looking very sad :=(