Real English: Talking about pets and animals

Hello.

My name is Emma, and this is my friend Gizmo, and today we are going to help you learn English.

Today's English is all about dogs.

Okay?

So, let's ask some questions to Gizmo, and we can get some answers.

Our first question: Do we call pets "he", "she", or "it"?

What do you think, Gizmo?

Usually for pets we like to use "he" or "she".

Okay?

So you might ask somebody: "What's her name?" or "What's his name?" when you're talking

about a dog or a cat.

We usually use "it" for wild animals, although sometimes we also use "he" and "she" if we

want to personify them.

So, majority of the time we use "he" or "she" when we're talking about pets.

Okay, question number two: What is pet hair called?

Do you know the answer to this one, Gizmo?

It is called fur.

Okay?

F-u-r, fur.

As you can see, Gizmo has a lot of fur.

We use the word "fur" when we're talking about cat hair, dog hair, hamster hair.

It's what we call fur.

Okay, our next question: What are pet hands called?

Okay, let's show Gizmo's off.

So Gizmo, what is this called?

This is a paw.

So, dogs and cats have paws.

I'm just going to put Gizmo down for a second.

There you go.

Okay, so his hands are called paws.

Okay, our next question: What does "canine" mean?

"Canine" is another way to say "dog", but "canine" is more scientific sounding.

So if you're reading a science book or something that's formal writing, you will probably see

the word "canine".

It's the science...

Scientific word for dog.

We also have the word "puppy".

What does the word "puppy" mean?

"Puppy" means a baby dog.

Okay?

So, when a dog is very small and very young, usually around, you know,

two months to one year, we call it a puppy.

For kittens, that's what we call a baby cat, a kitten.

Okay, our next question is a very good one: What sound does a dog make?

Sounds are very cultural.

In different cultures, animals make different sounds.

For dogs, in English, dogs can either bark, they can say: "Woof woof", or they can say:

"Ruff ruff".

Is this different than what dogs say in your language?

If you're wondering with cats or with, you know, all sorts of other animals, you can

actually check out Ronnie's video which covers a lot of these different animal sounds if

you're interested.

Okay, finally, our last question for vocabulary: What do you call a dog with no home?

So a dog that lives in the streets.

We call a dog with no home a stray dog, or we can also say a street dog.

So we would say:

"That dog has no owner. He's without a family.

He's a stray dog."

Or: "He is a street dog."

So now let's look at some grammar and pronunciation, and cultural tips about talking about dogs.

Okay, so our next question is a grammar question, and it's a very important grammar question.

Okay, so let me hold Gizmo.

Okay.

So, Gizmo, you see these two things?

"I like dog", "I like dogs".

Do you know what the difference between these two sentences are?

No?

Okay, well, let me tell you.

"I like dog" is very different than: "I like dogs".

When you want to say you like dogs as in, you know, you think they're really cute and

funny, and you enjoy them, you say: "I like dogs" with an "s".

This is different from: "I like dog" with no "s".

If you say: "I like dog" it makes it sound like you like to eat dog.

Okay?

And this is true for a lot of animals.

If we say: "I like chicken", it means I like to eat chicken.

This is very different from: "I like chickens", which means: "I think chickens are cute.

I enjoy chickens, and I find them very interesting."

Okay, so the next question is a pronunciation question, and that is:

What is the pronunciation difference between "dogs" and "ducks"?

So a duck is an animal, you know, that says: "Quack quack", at least in English it does,

and a lot of students, when they say these words they pronounce them the same way.

So people don't know if you're talking about a dog or a duck.

So, what is the difference in pronunciation?

Well, "dog" has a different vowel sound than "duck".

"Dog" is longer, we say: "dawg".

Compare this to: "duck", which is very short and a bit sharp.

This is an "aw" sound: "dog", versus "uh": "duck".

Okay? So you notice the vowel sound here is short, whereas the vowel sound here is long.

When we add and "s" to "dog" and an "s" to "duck", we also have a different sound.

In "dog", because of the "g", the "s" becomes a "zz" sound, as in a "z".

So we say: "dawgz".

You might not hear it, but there's a little bit of a "zz" sound at the end of that.

"Dogs".

Now, this is different from "ducks", which has a "ss" sound or an "s" sound.

So there is a pronunciation difference.

Say this one short with a "ss" sound, and this one is longer with a "zz" sound.

Okay, great.

So now let's look at some cultural questions about dogs.

Okay, so our next question: What do North Americans think of dogs?

And a lot of people in England think about dogs this way, and Australia.

And this isn't everybody, but this is what a lot of the population think.

What is their opinion on dogs?

Well, let's get Gizmo to help me out.

Gizmo, come here.

Okay, I'm going to pick him up.

Ah, here we go.

Okay.

So, in North American culture, dogs like Gizmo are often treated like family members.

Some people even treat them as if they are their children, although this is not everybody,

but they really do care about their dogs and they treat them like family.

All right.

This is Gizmo's first time on camera, so if he's a little nervous, he's never been on

camera before.

All right, let's look at the next question, small talk.

So, dogs are actually a really, really good...?

Oh, you want down, buddy?

Okay, I'll put you down.

Sorry.

Okay, so dogs are actually really good topics for small talk.

If you ever have a conversation with somebody and you see they have a dog, talking about

their dog is a great thing to do.

So if you're in the elevator or at the park and you just want to meet somebody, you can

ask them about their dog.

Here are some great questions, you can ask them:

"What's your dog's name?", "What's his name?",

"Is your dog a boy or a girl?", "Is it a male or a female?",

"How old is your dog?"

"How long have you had your dog for?"

Okay, so another really good question is: "What kind of dog do you have?"

So in this case we're asking about the type or the breed.

So there are many different breeds or types of dogs.

There are Chihuahuas, there are German Shepherds, Poodles, you know, Dalmatians.

There are tons of different types of dogs.

Gizmo, in case you're wondering, is a Lhasa Apso-Papillion mix.

Okay?

Beautiful breed.

And so people do like talking about this.

You can ask them about their breed.

Are they mix?

Are they are purebred?

Which means they are only one kind of dog, like a Poodle.

And there is so many different questions you can ask about dogs, but it's something people

really love talking about.

So I highly recommend if you see a person who has a pet, it's something that's a good

thing to talk about.

Okay, so like I said, our pets are like our family, here.

Oh, thank you, Gizmo, for that kiss.

So, one thing I wanted to say is that a lot of the times in North American culture you'll

actually see that dogs are indoor dogs.

They're not outside a lot.

They're actually...

They actually stay inside with us a lot.

Sometimes, you know, they sit on our couches, and for some people they even...

Like might share, like, the same bed or they might sleep on the same bed that, you know,

their owner has.

One other cultural thing that you might notice if you ever come to Canada or North America

is that a lot of dogs actually wear clothes here.

Okay?

And Gizmo is also...

He wears clothes, too, especially in the wintertime because it does get very cold.

So a lot of dogs have winter boots and winter jackets.

So if you come here, don't be surprised to see that.

Sometimes people dress up their dogs for fun, other times it's a necessity because it is

very cold during the winter.

Okay, so Gizmo and I would like to thank you for watching.

You know, we've had a great time today I think.

Isn't that right, Gizmo?

Yeah, he's a bit sleepy now.

Oh. Okay.

So he's just going to say bye.

So we hope you subscribe to our channel, and we have a lot of other resources there.

And if you come check out engVid at www.engvid.com, you can actually take a quiz on everything

we learned today.

All right?

So thank you, Gizmo, for your help today.

And I hope you've enjoyed this video.

Until next time, take care.