One day I was walking through my neighborhood and a dog began barking. Probably at me. Then a woman began loudly speaking Spanish to this dog. Immediately the dog was quiet. At that moment it occurred to me; this is a Spanish-speaking dog.
I had no idea what the woman had said to the dog though obviously it had something to do with commanding the dog to stop barking.
“Hush” is what I say to my dog when I want him to be quiet. If I had hushed the Spanish dog, he wouldn’t have a clue. If the Spanish woman had told my dog what she had just said to her dog, my dog wouldn’t have a clue.
I considered these dogs who are neighbors. They whine and bark at each other, but do they understand each other? One dog lives in a Spanish-speaking home, the other in an English-speaking home. Their people talk to them in their own language, and then send these dogs outside to their backyards. How are they to communicate with the dog next door? I am hoping they do a better job than I do when communicating with someone who speaks Spanish.
When my dog greets me at the door, he is saying, “Hi Mom. So glad you are home. I missed you.” I’m sure he is not saying something like, “Hola Madre. Mucho gusto…” and then something about “casa”. That’s as far as I can go with the translation.
What about pets left at the animal rescue? What if an English-speaking family adopts a Spanish-speaking dog, or a Spanish-speaking family adopts an English-speaking dog? I suppose the dog must become bi-lingual.
I realize I am leaving you with more questions than answers. I am also aware there are times my imagination gets the best of me.