Dogs have incredibly impressive senses, and we typically associate dogs with their amazing sense of smell. But how well do they hear?
Dogs have much more sensitive hearing than humans, hearing some sounds up to four times further away than we can. They have better high frequency hearing than us, but we are slightly better at hearing low frequency sounds.
Here, we take a deep dive into how well dogs hear compared to us, how their ears work, and why they seem to sense things before they happen.
How Does a Dog’s Hearing Compare to a Human’s?
Dogs are better at hearing high-frequency and quieter sounds than we are, but we’re slightly better at hearing low-frequency sounds than dogs.
High Frequency
Frequency is most typically measured in Hertz (Hz). Deep, bassy sounds have low frequencies. High-pitched sounds like birds chirping and children laughing and squealing are high-frequency sounds.
Decibels (dB) measure the sound’s pressure, which is essentially the volume of the sound, also called the amplitude wave.
Dogs can hear high-frequency sounds that go as high as 45,000 Hz, while we can only hear up to 20,000 Hz. So, dogs can hear high-pitched sounds that we can’t hear at all. This is how dog whistles work (which usually range from 23,000 to 54,000 Hz).
For example, a dog can pick up the sound of mice squeaking in a field while you wouldn’t. This also helps explain why you might see your dog reacting to something that you can’t see or hear.
Low Frequency
However, we hear lower frequencies similarly or even slightly better than dogs. We can generally hear down to about 20 Hz, while dogs can only hear as low as about 67 Hz.
Sounds 20 Hz and lower are infrasonic sounds (a type of sound wave that exists below the threshold of human hearing), which dogs definitely can’t hear, but they can probably feel it. This can be things like a volcano erupting or an earthquake.
Dogs are capable of hearing some low-frequency sounds if the volume is loud enough (high amplitude wave).
Comparison Chart
As well as dogs can hear, there are other animals that hear even better. This comparison chart looking at hearing frequency ranges helps put everything into perspective.
| Animal | Approximate range (Hz) |
| Porpoise | 75 – 150,000 |
| Beluga Whale | 1,000 – 123,000 |
| Bat | 2,000 – 110,000 |
| Mouse | 1,000 – 91,000 |
| Cat | 45 – 64,000 |
| Dog | 67 – 45,000 |
| Rabbit | 360 – 42,000 |
| Cow | 23 – 35,000 |
| Horse | 55 – 33,500 |
| Sheep | 100 – 30,000 |
| Human | 64 – 23,000 |
| Elephant | 16 – 12,000 |
| Owl | 200 – 12,000 |
| Goldfish | 20 – 3,000 |
| Chicken | 125 – 2,000 |
| Tuna | 50 – 1,100 |
How Do Dogs’ Ears Work?
An important part of a dog’s hearing starts with the pinna (ear flap), the large outer part of the ear that you see. Whether your dog’s ears are long and floppy or short and perky, the pinna acts a bit like a satellite dish, capturing sound waves and then funneling them through the ear canal.Their ear canals are much deeper than a human’s and this creates a better funnel to carry and amplify sound to the eardrum.
Dogs can also move their ears independently of each other as they have more than 18 muscles that control the ears. They can turn, raise, lower, and tilt their ears to pick up a sound and where it’s coming from, and their ears also express how they are feeling.
Why Do Dogs Have Such Great Hearing?
Dogs have a predatory heritage that made hearing prey essential to their survival. Before domestic dogs evolved, their wild ancestors hunted and one of their main prey were small rodents that made high-pitched sounds. Being able to hear these high frequency sounds allowed them to hunt better and locate their next meal. Interestingly, the reason humans aren’t so finely tuned to high-pitched sounds is that our ears evolved specifically to hear the pitch of the human voice.
Some people think that dogs have a “sixth sense” because they seem to detect events like storms or earthquakes before they happen, bark at something in your home that isn’t visible, or seem able to predict someone’s arrival. Their highly sensitive hearing alerts them to unusual noises.
Since we know that dogs can hear sounds that we can’t, they can pick up something outside that we aren’t aware of or before we can hear it.
That said, there’s no question that dogs are perceptive. Their hearing is excellent and so are their other four senses. The combination of their powerful senses of smell and hearing can help explain the “sixth sense” reactions that dogs seem to have.
Hearing Problems in Dogs
Just like us, dogs can develop hearing problems, particularly as they age. Hearing loss can be caused by exposure to loud noises, congenital conditions, or disease. Signs that a dog has trouble hearing include not responding to sounds or their name being called and not always being woken up by a loud noise.
- Congenital defects
- Chronic ear infections
- Ruptured eardrums
- Head injuries
- Degenerative nerve changes
- Infectious and inflammatory diseases
- Drug toxicities
- Breed related, especially dogs with white coats
Treatment will depend on the cause. Some issues such as infections may be treatable and a return to normal hearing is possible. Others such as congenital defects or degenerative nerve changes are not treatable and the hearing loss will be permanent.
Even if your dog’s hearing fails, you can use body language and teach your dog hand signals as a way to communicate. Some dogs will also still be able to hear a high frequency dog whistle, which is another potential method of communication.
Final Thoughts
Dogs have more sensitive hearing than humans. They can hear higher frequency and quieter sounds than us, but humans are slightly better at hearing low-frequency sounds. That said, dogs don’t have the best hearing in the animal kingdom. A cat’s ear has about 30 muscles (compared to the roughly 18 muscles in a dog’s ear), and they can hear up to 64,000 Hz (compared to the 45,000 Hz with dogs). Moths can hear up to 300,000 Hz!
We hope that this helps explain why your dog seems to know things will happen before they do. Those sensitive ears can pick up all kinds of information!
Related Reads:
- Do Dogs Think Humans Are Dogs Too? The Ideas Behind Their Relationship With Us
- Dog Friendly Beachers in Quebec
Featured Image Credit: Sergey Nivens, Shutterstock
