London: Researchers have developed a computer programme which can determine the gender and age of a dog through its bark.
Scientists from the Technical University of Madrid and Eotvos Lorand University in Budapest analysed 800 barks recorded from eight dogs in seven different situations and developed complex algorithms that were able to predict the gender and age of the canine.
"I imagine vets could use these techniques to help identify what is wrong with a dog and we are already working on an application for social robotics," said Dr Tamas Farago, of Eotvos Lorand University.
Social robots are autonomous machines that interact and communicate with humans or other such robots.
"We could develop emotional sounds for robots based on dog barks that can be recognised by humans - that would be a way to create believable social robots," Farago added.
Other applications include being able to diagnose behavioural issues, such as 'separation anxiety' and recognising aggressive dogs, 'The Independent' reported.
The barking experiments were done in Budapest with three male and five female Mudi breed Hungarian sheep dogs aged one to 10.
Researchers were able to recognise the sex of the dog in 85 per cent of cases. They accurately predicted the age - young, adult or old - 80 per cent of the time, according to 'The Telegraph'.
This is the first time that the sex and age of domestic dogs have been predicted with the help of sound analysis, researchers said.
According to the researchers, a scared dog will bark in a high pitched and rapid manner. If they feel alone, the noise will be high pitched but slower.
When a stranger approaches, the bark is deep, fast and harsh. A happy dog has a high-pitched and clear bark, researchers said.
The study was published in the journal Animal Cognition.
