HOME   NEWS   PICS   FUN   FORUM   INFO
  HOME   NEWS   FUN   FUN   FORUM   INFO  
    English   Français/French   Deutsche/German   Italiano/Italian   Español/Spanish   Nederlands/Dutch   Portuguese
 
N AMERICA EUROPE ASIA
AFRICA
S AMERICA
AUSTRALIA
ALL
POPULAR
RELATED
COMMENTS
 

Mutt does math

XI'AN (China)
Apr 27, 2007

 

A 3-year-old dog in Xi'an, Northwest Shaanxi Province, reportedly knows how to add, subtract, multiply and divide numbers up to 10. The small, white pug known as "Wawa"
(Wa Wa - meaning "baby"), can correctly answer questions such as "How many is 2+2 equal to?" and "How many is 3 x 3 equal to?"

The pooch responds by barking the appropriate number of times and sitting when finished.

To test the claims, a reporter from the Sanquin Daily visited the home of Mr. and Mrs. Pang where Wawa lives. "How many is 9 divided by 3 equal to?" asked the reporter. Wawa barked 3 times and squatted on the floor. 1

Skeptics, believing that Mr. Pang was covertly signaling the answers to Wawa, decided to test the dog without Mr. Pang present. Wawa still responded with perfect accuracy. 2

Mr. Pang says he began tutoring Wawa in math two years ago after noticing that the pooch showed a natural sensitivity to numbers. He began with hand gestures, showing one finger and saying, "Wawa, this is one," and training the dog to bark once. After a few weeks, Wawa graduated to 2, 3, 4 and so on. Within 6 months, the precocious pup had mastered 1-10 and began learning arithmetic operations.

What's next for Wawa? Geometry, maybe. Everyone knows dogs love to sink their teeth into pi.

Wawa the dog does math

ARRUFF-METIC

Mr. Pang has taught his pooch "Wawa" to count numbers up to 10 and perform elementary math calculations. The 3-year-old pug mix learned very quickly, mastering the basics after only 6 months of training, says Mr. Pang.
(Photo: Xi'an Daily)

CAN DOGS COUNT?

Thousands of years ago, Canis lupus (wolves) developed basic arithmetic skills in order to keep track of the members within the pack. Today, Canis lupus familiaris (dogs) still have that ancestral skill. 3

(However, some pooches need a calculator for the big numbers.)

calculator dog

Sum Mathemuttical Humor

A farmer is wondering how many sheep he has in his field, so he asks his sheepdog to count them. The dog runs into the field, counts them and then runs back to the farmer.

"40," says the dog.

"How can there be 40?" asks the farmer. "I only bought 38!"

"I know," says the dog. "But I rounded them up."

Sources:
1 "Wonderful pug-dog does arithmetic" Xi'an Daily. 20 Mar 2007
2 "Loveable puppy does math 1-10" Sanquin Daily. 20 Mar 2007
3 "Secret lives of dogs" New Scientist. 03 Aug 2002

Advertise here & save a dog
HOME HOME
NEWS NEWS
PICS PICS
FUN FUN
FORUM FORUM
INFO INFO
© 2006 CANINE NATION | REPRINTS & TERMS OF USE | CONTACT