Podcast Summary: Brains On! – "Do dogs know that they're dogs?"

Podcast: Brains On! Science podcast for kids
Episode Title: Do dogs know that they're dogs?
Date: November 18, 2025
Host: Molly Bloom
Guest Co-Host: Evelyn from Horsham, Pennsylvania
Featured Expert: Dr. Alexandra Horowitz, Dog Cognition Lab, Barnard College
Special Guest: Vanessa Woods, Duke Puppy Kindergarten

Episode Overview

This episode tackles a kid-submitted question: Do dogs know they’re dogs? Molly Bloom and her co-host Evelyn explore canine self-awareness, memory, dreams, and communication with the help of expert Dr. Alexandra Horowitz. The episode also dives into fascinating research on dog cognition, discusses whether dogs “speak” different languages, and features the show’s signature fun, including a doggy “advisory council” and an inventive mystery sound.

Main Themes & Key Insights

1. Do Dogs Know They're Dogs?

Discussion with Alexandra Horowitz

• Dogs recognize themselves as dogs, despite differences in size and breed.
• Studies show dogs can visually identify other dogs among various animals.
  • Quote: “...in studies, it looks like they recognize all of those types of breeds as one category of things, which is dogs.” — Dr. Alexandra Horowitz (07:04)
• Dogs do not pass the “mirror test” for visual self-recognition (used for humans, dolphins, elephants, etc.).
• The mirror test might not be fair because dogs are “smelling creatures”; scent is more important than appearance.

  • Dr. Horowitz developed an “olfactory mirror” experiment using marked scents and found dogs notice changes in their own smell, suggesting self-awareness.

  • Quote: “I think that they do have some kind of sense of themselves, but that it’s rooted in what they smell like, which is a little bit different than us…” — Dr. Alexandra Horowitz (09:25)

2. Dog Favorites: How Do Dogs Pick Their Person?

• Dogs are most attached to those who pay the most attention—walking, playing, and feeding them strengthens bonds.
  • Advice: “There’s no fail-safe way to become a dog’s favorite person, except to pay them a lot of attention.” — Dr. Alexandra Horowitz (09:54)

3. Dog Memory: What Do They Remember?

• Dogs recognize people, places, and can remember them over long absences.
• Their episodic memory (memory of life events) is hard to test, but dogs show clear signs of recognition.
• Dogs likely tell how long you’ve been gone by how much your scent fades from the house.
  • Quote: “The dog can tell how long you’ve been gone by how much of your smell has disappeared from the house. Isn’t that wild?” — Dr. Alexandra Horowitz (13:14)

4. Dog Cognition and Communication

• People often misunderstand dogs by assuming they experience the world like humans.
• Dogs primarily experience the world through smell rather than sight.
• There is no evidence of dog dialects; all dogs bark the same, but humans interpret or transcribe dog sounds differently in various languages.
  • Quote: “Dogs speak the same way no matter where they're from. There are no dog dialects that we know about. The only difference is how we, as different language speakers, refer to the sounds they're making.” — Dr. Alexandra Horowitz (19:03)

5. Do Dogs Dream?

• Dogs sleep about half the day, often in short naps (“dog naps”).
• Like humans, dogs have REM and non-REM sleep phases. REM sleep (occurring 20 minutes into sleep) is when dreaming commonly occurs.
• Physical signs like twitching legs indicate a dog is dreaming.
• Dogs prevented from muscle paralysis during REM have been seen acting out their dreams, e.g., pointing, digging.
  • Funny Moment: In a playful aside, “French Fry” the dog claims she dreams about eating garbage, humorously compared to owning a bed and breakfast. (17:14)

6. Theory of Mind and Dog Intelligence

• Dogs, like human babies, exhibit a form of “mind-reading”—noticing human gestures and inferring intent.
  • Quote: “They...understand our gestures and our body language in a way that almost no other animals do...In some cases, they can also read our minds.” — Vanessa Woods (22:15)
• Service dog research uses this understanding to select/train helpful dogs.

Memorable Quotes & Moments with Timestamps

• On Canine Self-Knowledge:
  • “They recognize other dogs as dogs...Even though they come in all shapes and sizes.” — Dr. Alexandra Horowitz (07:04)
• On the Limitations of Human-Centric Tests:
  • “Dogs are smelling creatures. They smell the world first, just the way we see the world first.” — Dr. Alexandra Horowitz (08:30)
• On Memory and Scent:
  • “Your dog can tell how long you’ve been gone by how much less of your smell is in the house.” — Dr. Alexandra Horowitz (13:08)
• On Language and Barking:
  • “Dogs speak the same way no matter where they're from...There are no dog dialects that we know about.” — Dr. Alexandra Horowitz (19:03)
• Funny Advisory Council:
  • “Oh, and if you see anyone from the Alpaca Advisory Council wandering around, tell them that got pushed to Thursday.” — Sandon (02:55)
• Doggy Dreams:
  • “A pointer dog might get up and point at dream birds, or a terrier might dig for dream rabbits in a dream Warren.” — Sandon (17:18)
• Dog Mind-Reading:
  • “Dogs really also seem to understand us in a really special way...In some cases, they can also read our minds.” — Vanessa Woods (22:15)

Timeline & Key Segments

| Timestamp | Segment | |------------|-------------------------------------------------------------| | 03:22 | Intro to main topic; Evelyn’s question about dog awareness | | 06:38-13:18| Interview with Alexandra Horowitz (dog awareness, memory) | | 13:33 | Mystery Sound segment begins | | 15:10 | Dog dreams and sleep cycles explained (Dog Council skit) | | 18:23 | Listener question about dog “languages” | | 19:03 | Dog dialects & communication, Alexandra Horowitz returns | | 20:44 | Mystery sound answer revealed & research at Duke | | 22:15 | Vanessa Woods on puppy research and theory of mind | | 23:29 | Wrap-up and “Dog Advisory Council” returns | | 23:53 | Summary of learnings by Molly & Evelyn |

Conclusion

The episode enchanted listeners with a playful yet scientific look into how dogs perceive themselves and the world. Dogs may not pass the visual “mirror test,” but evidence shows they understand they are dogs, likely through scent and social behaviors. They don’t have spoken dialects, but can learn “commands” in any human language. Our canine companions have strong social intelligence, show evidence of dreaming, and can “read” humans in remarkable ways.

For both kids and adults, this episode was a joyful, fact-filled exploration of the question: Do dogs know they’re dogs?

For more fun, photos, and to send questions: Visit brainson.org or tag @BrainsOn on social media!