What Do Dogs Like To Watch On TV?

You are watching your favorite TV show when your pooch walks into the room and takes her space.

At first, she sits on the couch but after a while takes a few steps in front of the TV and seems to enjoy the action.

Although she doesn’t concentrate for more than a few seconds, you can tell she loves what she is seeing.

You can see her bark and then sit still with her eyes glued to the screen. You are baffled.

You cannot believe that your canine friend understands what goes on?

Does it mean she can sit and enjoy the TV? What exactly does she like on the TV?

Do Dogs Watch TV?

When it comes to entertainment, watching TV is far from a canine’s mind.

She’d rather play with her interactive toys, play fetch or Frisbee outside, or run around the property with another dog.

Well, according to experts, dogs do like to watch TV as well. Granted, they can only concentrate for a few seconds or minutes at a time but they can watch TV.

 Dog behaviorist and founder of National Geographic’s “Dog Whisperer” show Cesar Millan claims that our four-legged friends do love watching things.

“That’s how dogs learn. When you invited your dog to the house, the window turned to be his first TV. However, after a while, the dog noticed that you derive a lot of information and get entertained when sitting in front of your TV. That’s how she found out about the new source of entertainment.” He said.

According to PetMD, dogs also seem to enjoy watching TV. They are thrilled by things in motion or sounds released by the different shows.

However, the canine vision is not as sharp as ours. This explains why they would rather move closer to the screen rather than sit on the couch.

 Additionally, dogs have a different color perception than ours. While we have three color processors in our retinas, our lovable pups only have two.

That means that they cannot perceive certain colors such as reds and pinks. Fortunately, they can see blues, yellows, and greens.

Do They Enjoy It?

It is one thing for dogs to watch TV on occasion and another to actually enjoy what they see.

In this study, dogs were given three screens at a time. The goal was to find out which screen the dogs would pick or if they’d roam around.

In the end, the researchers found that dogs stuck with one screen regardless of what was shown on it.

While this may offer some assurance that dogs can decide, it doesn’t prove whether they enjoy TV or not.

Humans essentially enjoy watching TV shows because it arouses certain emotions in them – anger, happiness, sadness, fulfillment, you name it.

 Dogs do not have the capacity to feel these things. To them, TV is entertaining when there are some things they can identify with –fast-moving objects, other dogs and pets, loud sounds, and more.

For now, we can rest on the fact that our doggies enjoy anything with these features however short their focus may be.

DOGTV capitalizes on this fact. The producers of the show try to come up with shows that capture the attention of dogs.

Their shows have more colors, frames per second, and other features suited to a dog’s vision.

After years of research, the founders claimed to have designed content meant to meet the attributes of a dog’s sense of hearing of vision and support their behavior patterns.

However, even with these promises, not all dogs find DOGTV content attractive. Those that do, only watch it for short bursts of time.

What Do Dogs Like to Watch On TV?

It is not enough to know that your doggie enjoys watching TV.

If you are thinking of taking advantage of this new form of entertainment, you might want to understand what she likes and what she doesn’t.

You don’t want to play an episode of ‘Desperate Housewives’ hoping your animal buddy will identify with it.

The following list details some of the things that excite your Fido on TV.

1. Action

This one is rather obvious. Anything with constant action is bound to get your dog glued to the screen.

According to Cesar Millan, action-packed movies and shows are great for a dog.

Dogs get excited by fast-moving objects and high-pitched sounds. It gets them jumping and concentrating on the screen.

Just be sure to watch the shows with the dog to calm them lest they react when they encounter such sudden movements and loud sounds in their daily lives.

Also, keep the volume low to avoid scaring the poor animal.

2. Animal Shows

Besides constant action shows, anything with animals on it will also capture the attention of your furry friend. This is especially true if the animal in question is a dog.

Even if the character on TV is a dog cartoon, your dog will jump at the opportunity to see them.

Shows with other animals also score well with many dogs especially those that canines find intriguing – cats, birds, reptiles, and squirrels.

Your Fido is likely to react when they see another dog on TV, so be prepared for this. Remember they cannot tell the difference between reality and fiction.

 If your pooch loves other dogs, they may not react at all. However, if they have some bad blood with a neighbor’s dog or any other dog for that matter, they might jump, lunge, or bark.

Nevertheless, animal shows are a win-win in the dog world.

So, turn on Nat Geo Wild and let your doggie have a time of her life.

3. Cartoons

Cartoons are not only designed for kids but they can also be enjoyed by some dogs.

While speaking to Forbes, DOGTV’s CEO Gilad Neuman said that the network “exposes dogs to challenging things like vacuum cleaners, doorbells, children, and riding in cars.”

 Most cartoons have some if not all of these features. Plus, they have fast-moving images, bright colors, and high-pitched sounds.

And many do not have very complicated storylines – just a lot of action that your dog can follow through.

4. Nature

This might come as a shock to you but cute natural features may also catch the attention of a dog. This is according to this article on USA Today.

 Apparently, pups also love watching TV shows depicting 3-5-minute shows of relaxing content such as videos of landscapes.

 Who knows, perhaps the sight of vast green space makes your dog imagine running in huge fields for hours on end.

Let’s face it: which dog wouldn’t be excited at such an idea?

5. Sports

While not all dogs are not geared toward sporting activities on TV, many of them cannot resist the action. This is true for sports involving balls. These include soccer, basketball, baseball, tennis, and badminton.

 Cesar Millan says that dogs enjoy anything with a ball. And we couldn’t agree more.

The ability they have to lock their focus on the tiny leather ball is pretty amazing.

The next time you are watching EPL, be sure to invite your dog to be a part of the audience.

What If My Dog Is Not A Fan Of TV?

It can be heartbreaking to do all you can to get your dog interested in TV in vain.

Well, according to PetMD, dogs are more like people. Some truly enjoy sitting in front of screens while others don’t care much for it.

No matter the action on the screen, the latter category will not show any interest whatsoever.

 Expose your dog to the above types of TV shows and watch if there’s any curiosity.

 If you get nothing, try other forms of entertainment for your canine friend.

Parting Thoughts

When looking for the right shows for your dog, you are spoilt for choice.

 From cartoons to dog shows to nature to sports, the list is long. The trick is to try different things for your pooch until you hit the right spot.

 If you are not successful, there are other things to do with the dog.