# Do dogs remember people?



## cynster (Feb 26, 2011)

I am leaving for a week and wondering if my dog will forget me while she stays at my parents' house. How long does someone have to be gone before the dog forgets?


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## Maggie Girl (Feb 27, 2011)

She won't forget you. She'll miss you, but not forget.


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## Pawzk9 (Jan 3, 2011)

cynster said:


> I am leaving for a week and wondering if my dog will forget me while she stays at my parents' house. How long does someone have to be gone before the dog forgets?


Years. I've gone to visit my puppies who hadn't seen me in years. I've seen some of my old rescues too. They remember me, though they may make it clear to me that they have new "digs" now, and new people. Dogs adjust, but I don't think they forget those who are close to them.


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## Laurelin (Nov 2, 2006)

Rose remembers both of her previous owners (we're her third home) the times we've seen them. She goes completely crazy and we've only seen the one owner twice in three years, I believe. The first time we saw them she was a year and two homes later and still remembered them.


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## cynster (Feb 26, 2011)

That's good. It's been in the back of my mind and making my stomach upset. I've never been so attached to a pet


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## SydTheSpaniel (Feb 12, 2011)

Definitely will remember you. I first got Sydney in December of 2008 when I was with my now fiance. We ended up breaking up for a little while the following July. Sydney was given to a very good friend who was married and had another dog. Sydney was with them from July 2009 until we took her back about 2 months ago. When I lived with this friend this past fall, Sydney definitely remembered me, and when I left for Air Force BMT, I got stories that she was getting ill and waiting by the door from me every day. A dog picks his family and will remember them for a lifetime!


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## Michiyo-Fir (Jul 25, 2009)

Nia remembers people she's known half a year ago or even longer.


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## Pepper (Jan 27, 2008)

Yeah my best friend who my dog loves left Alaska for two years. When she came back and said hi to Bella she could have passed out with excitement.

They remember dog friends too. I lived with a family for about a year who had a lab. We went back to visit a couple mo ths ago and it had been about 8 months and both dogs lost it and went nuts with loovvveee.


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## Polywoggy (Mar 7, 2011)

I have only left Willow once in her lifetime. It was for a week on a trip to Disney in Florida with my best friend and her daughter, who was 6yo and had brain cancer. I hated having to go- I think I have SA when away from my dog lol- but it was not a situation you can refuse. Willow was so excited when I got back- I didn't think she would ever calm down.

She once saw my ex after a period of about 3 yrs away from him, and had a very excited reaction.

About once a year, one of my boyfriend's exes, who was Jack's first "Mommy", comes and has a visit with him. He gets excited, and then grumpy and growly when she is about to leave. He gets grumpy with my boyfriend's daughter when he sees her too. She moved back with her Mom 3 yrs ago and he misses her- only sees her about once every 2 months now.

After I had moved out of my parents home, our family dog who was an American Eskimo named Krissy, was always very excited to see me.


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## Pynzie (Jan 15, 2010)

My dog goes crazy when I come home from college, and usually I am away for anywhere from 1-3 months before coming home. She definitely remembers me and gets excited for me to come home. She's getting older and it's pretty rare for her to get zoomies, but she always gets them right when I walk in the door for the first time in a while. It's really fun to see her get so excited to see me.


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## cynster (Feb 26, 2011)

Wow - That is amazing that they can remember so much... And I had no idea about them missing other dogs too! The dogs I've grown up with have been farm dogs, and really don't care if I leave or stop by - and one of them has even had one of her puppies visit but she didn't recognize him. 

But then again - I'm not working with them all on a daily basis since they primarily keep rats/mice at bay (and raccoon patrol for the GSD) and one of them is practically feral simply because he's never needed to be trained to do anything but enjoy the property and the other dogs and stay within the invisible fence. Maybe they do miss me but in their own way.


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## Binkalette (Dec 16, 2008)

She won't forget you, don't worry! Dogs remember people just like we do, if not better imo. When Zoey was a puppy my parents next door neighbour came over and thought it would be fun to chase her around the yard scaring her (a grown man!). Zoey was terrified, and I was left disliking a guy I grew up thinking was nice. We have seen him 2 or 3 times since then (he hasn't chased her again) out in his yard, or once when he came over to the house, and each time Zoey just freaks. She starts barking and snarling at him like I've never heard her do to anyone else. She definitely remembers him. They also never forget our family members, even after we haven seen them for months and months. Your girl won't forget you in a week, promise.


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## RonE (Feb 3, 2007)

I don't think they EVER forget.

When I was a kid, we had a young man living with us. All of us, including the family beagle, Charlie, were very fond of Julio and dismayed when he got drafted and sent to Viet Nam. 

He was gone for three years and, when he returned, he wanted to surprise us. He walked the half-mile from the bus station and Charlie started howling and zooming long before Julio was even within sight of the house.


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## Shaina (Oct 28, 2007)

I'm with the rest of the posters...mine remember people they've seen around at training clubs or whatnot...people they've never even lived with before. They even remember and recognize them out of context...I remember once instance in which Kim recognized a gal from our training club when we bumped into her around town, and it's good she did because I did not! I'd never seen her in work cloths and without her dog at her side!


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## TStafford (Dec 23, 2009)

Porter went close to a year without seeing my trainer and one of the ladies he likes at Petsmart. As soon as he saw both of them he went all puppy on them.

Also he's not the biggest fan of black men being around me when i'm alone (I have no idea why). He met my friend Miller (A black guy) when he was puppy...4 months I think. We spent a good part of the day with him so Porter got to know him. The next time he saw Miller was when we were on a walk when he was 14 months old and Miller came running full speed at us. I thought for sure Porter was going to freak out, but he got all happy and started trying to kiss Miller. He also didn't sniff him like he does new people so i'm guessing he remembered him. I think if dogs have a good time with somesome or have a reason to remember they will.


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## Labmom4 (Feb 1, 2011)

I raised my chocolate lab, Remy, to be a guide dog. I got him at 9 wks old and he left me for formal training at 1 1/2 yrs old. I didnt see him for 6 months. I thought he was going to make the program, but he didnt, so they told me I could have him back if I wanted him. Well, of course! 
I walked into the kennel area of the school and I didnt see him at first, but he saw me! He started yelping and jumping up and down and wiggling all over! When I opened his kennel, he jumped all over me and gave me the happiest slobbery kisses. I cried very happy tears  When I got him home, it was like he'd never left


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## dantero (Feb 2, 2011)

Dogs can remember someone for years. I have sent pups to their new home at 8 weeks, and been told by their owners 3 or 4 years later that they were watching one of my videos on YouTube, and when their dog heard my voice it when crazy trying to find me. So I didn't even have to be there, just the sound of my voice was enough. I've had the same thing happen in person, a few years or even 5+ years after placing a pup. One time I was stopping at a friends house on the way through town. We have been friends for years, but haven't lived in the same area in quite some time. All her dogs are from me, but 1 I hadn't seen one of them in a few years. My friend told me to just come on in when I got there, so I walked in the front door, her dog came flying down the hallway with her "intruder face" on, I said "hey puppy" and mid-stride she turned into all wiggles and hello's. And she's not a very social dog, so it was definitely a case of her remembering who I am.


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## 123fraggle (Feb 20, 2009)

My sisters and I all have very distinct laughs, some call it a giggle. One of my sisters has been breeding for years. She had a 6 year old male that a couple from Japan was very interested in. The dog went to live with them and she didn't get to see him for two years. When the dog first saw her he seemed indifferent and didn't respond to her differently than anyone else. She was almost in tears. Then someone said something to make her laugh and the dog went crazy, jumping all over her and whining and kissing her. I'm surprised he didn't recognize her by her smell. To make a long story short, she got the dog back a year later and he lived with her until he crossed the bridge at 14.


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## kafkabeetle (Dec 4, 2009)

Sydney absolutely remembers people. She lived with my parents for the first 2 years of her life and whenever they visit she acts super crazy. Usually when someone comes to the door she's a bit leery at first, might growl, etc, but when it's them she is just full of excitement, rolls on her back and whines to be petted...especially with my dad. So even though they weren't very good to her, she definitely had some kind of special connection with them.

Sydney also had to stay with my boyfriends mom for a month once when we were having roommate troubles. The first few times she saw bf's mom after the incident she did the same thing she does with my dad and then whined and paced for literally 10 minutes after she left. It was like she was mourning.  I felt really bad after that and never again will I leave her with someone else for an extended period of time. She just gets so attached, it's hard on her.


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## hanksimon (Mar 18, 2009)

Ya'll are so lucky. 

When I walk my dog off leash, the second he sees a squirrel (or a cookie on the ground), he forgets that I exist!


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## GottaLuvMutts (Jun 1, 2009)

Kit loves everybody, so it's sometimes hard to tell who she remembers and who she's just greeting enthusiastically. But there are a couple of people we know thru dog sports who she absolutely cannot resist. If she sees them under any context, she immediately goes over threshold and will NOT calm down until she gets a chance to greet them. She only sees them maybe ~once a month on average, but that doesn't matter - she knows exactly who they are. Interestingly, they are the people who got us into disc and agility. I wonder if she somehow knows. 

In general, I find that Kit takes cues from me on how to feel about someone. Yes, she loves everybody, but if I dislike them or don't know them, then she will only greet with a tail wag and leaning against the person asking for pets. If it's someone we interact with frequently, talk to a lot, etc., reactions range anywhere from jumping on them to lick their face all the way up to humping them out of excitement (only happened once). It's also much more animated if the person has ever fed her.


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## xxxxdogdragoness (Jul 22, 2010)

Oh mine chase squirrels too lol, they always come back though because they have always been rewarded heavily for returning. They know that as long as they come back, they get to chase whatever they want lol... Or course they never catch anything.


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## TStafford (Dec 23, 2009)

hanksimon said:


> Ya'll are so lucky.
> 
> When I walk my dog off leash, the second he sees a squirrel (or a cookie on the ground), he forgets that I exist!



For real! Porter is all "NEW SMELL!!!!!!!....who are you again?". Same with people. He would be easy for a woman or child to dognap.


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## Mdawn (Mar 3, 2007)

Uallis and Eddie remember people that they haven't seen in a long time. We have a friend that used to be around a lot when the dogs were growing up. Now the friend doesn't come around as much because he moved. It can be months between visits and both dogs still know the sound of his car when he pulls in the driveway.


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## 3catsnadog (May 9, 2011)

We rescued our puggle at a year old after it had gone though 5 other families for her hyperness. We were so afraid when we left her to go on vacation about a year after we had her, that she would think we were leaving her as she had been left before. Then i was afraid she wouldn't remember us when we got home, thinking that we had left her. Well, as soon as she heard our truck pull in the boarders driveway, she went nuts and was all over us as we walked in. I am sure she will be fine!!!! You on the other hand may be alittle paranoid when you leave


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## Polywoggy (Mar 7, 2011)

123fraggle said:


> I'm surprised he didn't recognize her by her smell.


 Me too. I always thought that dogs knew us primarily by our scent. I guess noises can be important too though. The bf's Jack has always been one to know people by the sound of their cars. The bf tends to bore of vehicles quickly. Usually he does a trade-in every year, sometimes, twice. Jack is fairly quick to start recognizing the sound of the new vehicle.


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## BrittanieJo (Sep 23, 2010)

I'm with everyone else she will be a happy pup when you get home! When I went away to college my previous lab Squirt would be waiting at the door for me when I came home for breaks.My mom always thought it was funny that she would tell her I was coming home that day and Squirt would wait by the door ALL day for me. She then wouldn't leave my side the entire visit home. My parents divorced when I was 13 and 10 years later Squirt still freaked out every time my Dad came over. We have had Aggie for a much shorter time than Squirt was around (she passed away last summer) and Aggie goes to a kennel when we go away (since we are far from family now) and she is not only ecstatic to get to the kennel to see the girls that work there but is ecstatic to see us when we go to pick her up. Her entire back end wags when she gets to her kennel and when we pick her up. It makes me feel good that she's so happy to stay somewhere while we are gone (it's an amazing kennel we love them) and warms my heart when we get back to see her!


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## morningbirds (Oct 4, 2010)

Arthur remembers our regular visitors (who visit once a month/every two months on average) and gets super excited to see them even though he doesn't see them every day. They definitely remember, and Sydney will definitely remember you.


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## fentomento (May 13, 2011)

After reading all your posts, I know that really the dog remember people and there are lots of other things for dogs which are connected with people.


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## Kyllobernese (Feb 5, 2008)

Over the years I have always thought like everyone, that a dog does not forget you until Kim came along. I raised her from a puppy, she was very attached to me and very shy of everyone else but my sister. I had to rehome her at four years of age. She was in her new home for about six months and I happened to be in the neighborhood so stopped in. She did not in any way remember me, even when I talked to her and said her name, she gave no recognition in any way, did not even want to come to me. We had alway joked about Kim being a rather odd dog and I had worried about her settling in at a new home. No worry about that, she was obviously very attached to her new owner and had completely forgotten about me. I still find it hard to believe that she did not remember me.

On the other hand I have sold pups and not seen them for ages, yet they remembered me.


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## Irishman (May 13, 2011)

When my dog was very young, my mom made a good impression on him. To this day, although she probably only drops by every few months, he goes nuts when he sees her.



hanksimon said:


> Ya'll are so lucky.
> 
> When I walk my dog off leash, the second he sees a squirrel (or a cookie on the ground), he forgets that I exist!


I'm trying to train my dog to walk off the leash, or even to just stop pulling! Don't fret the squirrel issue too much. You dog just gets over-stimulated over certain things. I've just started training my dog to pay attention to me instead of distractions. I'm very new at this, but one thing I've found that helps is "Watch me". I hold a treat up at my face, standing tall, and say, "Watch me". At first I click/treat for just looking, then holding eye contact for a few seconds, and then longer. Just how long depends on the excitement level of my dog at that time. It helps.


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## bulldavis (Aug 7, 2010)

My dog remembers people she have only met a few times and hasn't seen in a year.


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