Famous talking dog questions her existence and asks owner 'when will I die'
When Alexis Devine began training her pooch to talk using a special button board, she never anticipated the types of thoughts Bunny would be able to express. But the three-year-old sheepadoodle has proven dogs can understand much more of the world than just treats, sticks and games.
From questioning her existence on earth to referring to herself as human, Bunny has shared some highly intelligent and surprising beliefs. Alexis, from Seattle, US, told the Mirror: "Bunny is able to communicate when she is concerned about something so that I can talk her through it, help her explore it or just acknowledge it.
Alexis taught Bunny the sheepadoodle to talk using buttons when she was a puppy (FluentPet)"If I'm not concerned, she can see that she doesn't need to be concerned either.
"Alternatively, she can tell me when she is happy with a certain game, human or food and this can inform me about how to positively affect her daily life going forward."
Bunny's famous TikTok account @whataboutbunny boasts 8.3 million followers and the majority hail her a 'genius' - thought some have concerns about her thoughts.
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As well as expressing that she's 'big sad', Bunny has been captured repeatedly pushing the buttons 'when no Bunny?' - which Alexis took as a question on when she'd die.
"My first interpretation was that Bunny was perhaps asking about death. It could have meant a million things though," Alexis explained.
But the most complex question that Bunny has asked Alexis so far is why her partner Johnny was leaving the house to get a takeaway.
Alexis explained: "As soon as he walked out the door, Bunny ran to her board and pressed 'we love you why went?'. I interpreted this as, 'We love you Johnny. Why did you leave?'
"This seems complex for many reasons: usage of a group pronoun, an emotion, a question and the past tense. Her body language seemed to mirror her 'verbal' expression.
"Once I explained that Johnny would be back soon, Bunny settled right down. I think about this interaction a lot."
Some of Bunny's viral videos have also shown her asking 'what dog is' and enquiring why she's a dog.
"She most commonly refers to herself as human, but there have also been several occasions where she has referred to herself as a dog," Alexis explained.
"Maybe she sees aspects of herself in both worlds. It doesn't really matter to me whether she thinks she is a dog or a human.
"What's interesting is that she chooses to interact in this way at all."
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At one point, Bunny's followers worried that she was going through an 'existential crisis' when she pressed 'help' and 'who is that?' at her reflection in the mirror.
In one viral TikTok video Bunny asked Alexis when she will die (FluentPet)
Another time Bunny questioned her reflection in the mirror (FluentPet)But Alexis reassured that this was normal behaviour for dogs displaying anxiety and aggression around their maturing age - the only difference was that Bunny could communicate it.
To help her generalised anxiety disorder, Alexis put Bunny on Fluoxetine medication last year and she's since shown positive signs.
"Between the Fluoxetine, some environmental change and an active management strategy, Bunny's quality of life has improved dramatically," Alexis said.
"Her threshold is much higher now and when she does react, she recovers quickly. And perhaps unsurprisingly, her existential commentary has all but stopped."
Bunny is able to use 100 buttons to share her dreams and ask to play (FluentPet)As well as expressing her deepest and darkest thoughts, Bunny has shared her dreams and requested playtime - all using 100 buttons to speak.
"I've been using buttons with Bunny from the moment we brought her home at eight weeks old," Alexis said.
"My goal has always been to communicate with her in as many ways as possible in order to facilitate the closest relationship possible."
The duo use FluentPet's HexTile system and Alexis says the secret to cracking the technique is "patience and lots of positive reinforcement".
Do you have an unusual dog story to share? Email [email protected].
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