The Miracle of Talking Dogs

As a child I always wanted to be able to talk to my dog and have him talk back to me in a manner that I could understand — much like one of my favorite children's literature characters, Dr. Doolittle. That desire never left me, and it was part of the reason why I have spent a good deal of my adult life studying canine communication. I think that this urge is universal since there are so many legends and folktales about talking animals. Sometimes these tales are tied to holiday seasons, such as Christmas. This was brought to mind when I was attending an end of year party with a number of my colleagues from the University.

We were standing in a large room that was gaily decorated in a traditional Christmas manner. There was a huge pot sitting on a little heater. It contained mulled wine and a lot of it had been consumed. A few of my colleagues, knowing my fascination for doggie related folklore and traditions, began to recall things from their childhood which related to the holiday season and dogs.

One of them started the conversation by saying "When I was growing up in eastern Poland they used to have the belief that girls who grind poppy seeds on Christmas Eve can hope for a quick marriage. After dinner the girls would grind a teaspoon of poppy seeds in a bowl and then step out of the house. They then listened and watched carefully hoping that a dog would bark. The idea was that the direction that the barking dog was facing would point to where their future husband will come from."

Another one chimed in and said, "I was told that animals could talk for an hour starting at midnight on Christmas Eve."

Several of the people in the group nodded their heads and mumbled that they had heard similar tales. He continued "According to legend, at least, Christ's birth occurred at exactly midnight. Inside the stable the animals watched in wonder as the newborn baby was wrapped in swaddling clothes and lovingly placed in a manger. Meanwhile three shepherds had arrived, each with their dog, and all of them gathered around the child."

One of the people in the group interrupted at this point, "When I visited Granada I was told that the names of the three dogs that got to see baby Jesus were Cubilon, Lubina, and Melampo. I learned that it was a tradition for many people in Granada to give their dogs one of these names as a sort of good luck charm."

The original speaker smiled and continued his tale, "It is said that on that magic night, as the baby looked around, each animal that he gazed upon spoke. We are not told what the animals said specifically, only that they praised God and called the birth of the holy child a miracle. The story goes that God chose to mark this particular event by granting animals the ability to speak at midnight on every Christmas Eve.

"I heard this story many times when I was a child and believed it, or at least hoped that it was true. At that time I had a mixed breed spaniel named Sam who I dearly loved. I always wanted to be able to have a conversation with him, so when I was about seven years old I announced to my family that I was going to stay up till midnight on Christmas Eve so that I could talk with Sam and find out what he was thinking and to ask him whether he really loved me the way that I loved him. I also announced that we would stay up near the Christmas tree, because that would be the most magical place in the house on that particular night.

"So Sam and I sat on the sofa together and watched television to pass the time. We had one of those windup mantle clocks sitting over the fireplace, and it chimed each hour. Shortly before midnight I turned off the TV and waited in anticipation until the clock's chiming finished announcing that the magic time had arrived. Then I began to question Sam.

"Sammy, tell me do you love me?" Sam gave a happy whimper and licked my face.

"'Sam talk to me. Tell me what you're thinking. Tell me what you want.' I asked him in an eager voice. Sam was a typical spaniel, and he picked up on my excitement and his happy whimper started to turn into a series of barks. Our exchange rapidly became a sort of verbal dance in which I sincerely asked Sam a question and Sam responded by barking. I was getting very frustrated and sad since he was not speaking. 'Sam if you really loved me you would talk to me. It's midnight on Christmas Eve and this is supposed to be a magic time. Please tell you me you love me as much as I love you.'

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"I don't know if it was Sam's barking that woke my dad or if he had stayed awake to see how my plans to have a conversation with my dog would turn out. However, I noticed that he was there only after he sat down beside us on the sofa. I looked at him with tears in my eyes and blubbered, 'I don't think Sam loves me. He won't answer. He won't talk to me. Even now on Christmas Eve.'

"My dad put his arm around me and said 'He is talking to you, and he did answer. Whoever said that the miracle of dogs speaking on Christmas Eve means that the dogs will speak in English or French or German or Chinese, just because those are the languages that the humans who are asking the questions are using? Dogs will speak in the language that they know and that is the language of dogs. I think that the real miracle is that on Christmas Eve we can understand what they are saying — at least a little bit.'

"Just as if it were part of the planned script Sam gave an excited couple of barks, and then put his paws on my chest and proceeded to lick my face in a happy manner. My dad smiled and said 'I distinctly hear Sam saying that he loves you very much right now.'

"I remember breaking into a bout of giggling and recall saying 'I think I understand him. Sam I love you too!'

"At least that is the way that I remember the miracle of my dog talking on Christmas Eve."

Stanley Coren is the author of many books including: The Wisdom of Dogs; Do Dogs Dream? Born to Bark; The Modern Dog; Why Do Dogs Have Wet Noses? The Pawprints of History; How Dogs Think; How To Speak Dog; Why We Love the Dogs We Do; What Do Dogs Know? The Intelligence of Dogs; Why Does My Dog Act That Way? Understanding Dogs for Dummies; Sleep Thieves; The Left-hander Syndrome

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