Rescue Dog Tries To 'Eavesdrop' On Conversation, But Her Tail Gives Her Away
A dog's tail can tell you a lot about it, like how it might be feeling or whether it wants a treat. In fact, one adorable dog named Bailey reminded us just how much a tail can give away. In a viral TikTok video posted in September 2025 that's garnered more than 4.5 million views, Bailey makes her greatest attempt to seem totally relaxed as her humans test her eavesdropping skills with a very dog-specific conversation right above her. It all starts with Bailey lying still on her family's kitchen floor and her human, Florida resident Hannah Perkins, calling her "a very good girl." That's when Bailey's now-viral tail gives her away.
@hannahperkins00 just testing if shes listening—she wags to all the positive words and stopped on the one negative 🤣 #dogs #dogsoftiktok #fyp #dogmom
Bailey's tail immediately starts wagging at the sound of "good girl" and continues when she hears that she's also "a very pretty girl." Still attempting to lie still, Bailey's tail goes wild when she hears mention of how much she "loves to go for walks outside." Yet, this pup refuses to move the rest of her body as if fooling anyone about being relaxed. Most telling in this whole exchange is when Bailey hears something she probably doesn't like: that she's a bad girl sometimes. That's when her once-wild tail completely stops wagging. Naturally, people in the comments came to her defense. One viewer wrote, "Yeah, I don't believe she's ever bad." Bailey doesn't move again until she's assured that "most of the time she's a good girl." Can you blame her?
Do dogs like Bailey really understand us?
Many of us might wonder if dogs know when we're talking to them, as well as if they understand us. Bailey's not-so-discreet reaction to her family's conversation may show that they have some idea. Hannah Perkins seems to believe so, commenting on her TikTok video, "I fully believe she understands a good bit. If I'm asking her to do something and she doesn't listen I just say, 'I know you know what I'm asking' and she immediately acts right."
Interestingly, a 2025 study published in the journal Animal Cognition found that dogs can understand specific words even when they're said without enthusiasm or any strong emotion. This shows that dogs may not just memorize sounds but also actually know the meaning of certain words. Of course, added emotion, like in Perkins' video, probably helps. Either way, it's clear that Bailey's an awesome communicator. Not only did she wag to show excitement about walks and being a good girl, but she also showed constraint with any mention of being "bad." After all, one of the reasons dogs have tails is to communicate things to us (and other dogs), including everything from positive emotions to signs of fear. Ultimately, while dog science may still be a little mysterious, there's one thing we're sure of: Bailey's an absolutely adorable pup.