Have you ever wondered what your dog is thinking and feeling? If you’re anything like other dog parents, those thoughts probably cross your mind all the time. It’s easy to bond with dogs, but even then, we don’t always know what’s going on in their heads. With this new smart dog collar, you might be able to.
A South Korea startup designed a special collar that can better tell you what your dog’s barks mean. Specifically, it will tell you how they’re feeling when they bark. For many families, this is a step closer to communicating with furry friends.
Dogs Can Tell Us Their Feelings
The Petpuls dog collar is an AI-powered collar that can recognize five different canine emotions. If your dog barks, the collar can tell you if they’re happy, relaxed, anxious, angry, or sad. Some barks might seem obvious, but many dog parents were surprised by the results. Our dogs might not be as easy to read as we once thought.
Research for this unique product began back in 2017. The company analyzed over 10,000 barks from at least 50 different breeds. Then, they developed an algorithm for these barks and emotions. The collar currently has a 90% accuracy rate for emotion recognition. So far, people are impressed with the collar’s abilities. And some are even shocked by the results with their own dogs.
“I thought she was just happy when she played and felt sad and anxious when I wasn’t home…actually she felt angry when she lost a game she played with me, like how humans feel,” said Moon Sae-mi, who has a six-year-old Border Collie.
The collar also functions like a “doggy Fitbit”. It can track your dog’s physical activity and rest. All this new information about your furry friend can be accessed through a related smartphone app.
Communication is Key
Andrew Gil, director of global marketing at Petpuls Lab said that he hopes this product will make communication easier for humans and their dogs. Many people surrender their dogs because of miscommunication. So, hopefully this collar will help people better understand dogs.
“Petpuls can have an important role in the pandemic…it helps owners understand how dogs feel and increases their bonding,” said Gil.
This collar first went on sale in October 2020. You can find it on the company’s startup website, where it comes in several colors. Around the same time, a similar app was created called MeowTalk, where it tells you what your cat’s meows mean.
Technology is incredible, especially since it helps us become closer to our four-legged family members. Before we know it, we’ll be able to hold entire conversations with animals. But until then, we’ll just keep finding other ways to bond with our lovable pups.
H/T: reuters.com
Featured Image: Screenshot, CBS Miami YouTube
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