do you think they know what we say

Probably not the actual words, but they understand the tone you use. My cats do anyway. And they communicate with me in other ways. My male cat Diego, if he wants to go outside, to get my attention he opens the bathroom door. He isn't allowed in there because until recently, he had a habit of doing his business in the bath or on the bathroom floor, he has stopped doing it but now knows he can use this method to get me to open the back door!

I suppose they must associate certain words/sounds with particular actions and I would guess that the tone of voice makes a difference too. Animals which are domesticated learn to respond to their names and commands like 'sit'; 'stay' etc dont they tho' I suppose that's also from non-verbal clues. I think they can pick up on your moods once they've been around you for a bit.

I think they do understand. That's why dogs could be taught to sit. When I visit my aunt's dogs, they know to sit down when I put my finger to my lips because my aunt does it often and then offer them a treat. Animals are smart, they just communicate differently.

To be honest, i don't think animals understand what we are saying to them,however,it not mean that they don't understand the meaning of our.Some simple wodrs they can know.There are three dogs in my family, when my mom says:out,downstairs,they can know what know.

I talk to my lab like he is a person, and while I know he has no clue what I am saying, he responds to my tone.