Dog DO understand what humans are saying

[Emiliano]

I have a very intelligent family dog who knows the name of all of her toys and will brings them to you when asked. She also likes to "trick" us, like you ask her to bring you her frog but she brings you the rope, then she acts really goofy, waiting to be told "that's not the frog!" Then she runs and gets the frog.

I'm curious about the history that leads to the ability of humans and dogs to communicate so well, but not surprised at all that dogs have a vocabulary. I've known police dogs from my job that clearly have it, as well as service dogs. So it doesn't surprise me that a study found similar results. That said, it's still impressive.

I'd like to know if the same is true for cats. And why or why not a similar relationship wasn't developed. My cat, I feel like he's very in tune with my feelings and what I'm asking when I say something to him. And I can tell what his different meows mean. But I feel like there is a lot more selective understanding there.