Woman Thought Dog Wasn’t Listening To Her But Realised He Only Understands Spanish

Wondering why your dog acts up? Sometimes, it's as simple as speaking different languages!

Meet Ariana Giampietro, a 26-year-old who thought her foster dog, Monty, was just being naughty by not following English commands.

Ariana with her Spanish-speaking foster dog Image: Ariana Giampietro / SWNS

After a week of confusion, she discovered Monty understood only Spanish.

Monty's past on a farm with a Spanish-speaking family explained it all. Ariana then learned 'down' and 'let's go' in Spanish, creating a special connection with Monty.

Monty quickly adapted to his new environment, effortlessly responding to commands in Spanish.

His transition into his new home was remarkably smooth once his owners switched to speaking Spanish with him.

Monty is on a fast-track journey towards becoming bilingual, as he's also being introduced to English in preparation for his upcoming move to his forever home with his new adoptive family.

Ariana, an adoption case manager for children in care, from Gainesville, Florida, US, said: 'I could tell he wanted to – he was listening to me, but it was like he didn't know how.

Monty simply couldn't understand her English commands Image: Ariana Giampietro / SWNS

'Once I found out about his background, and realised it was because he only knew Spanish, I was amazed.

'I was so happy to understand where the dissonance came from. After I started speaking to him in Spanish, it was like he settled right in.

'He started getting "zoomies", and his overall confidence skyrocketed because all of a sudden we weren't alien to him.

'Nothing prepares you for the shock of being able to bridge that cultural divide – I was shocked but so excited when it all made sense.'

A stroke of luck came Ariana's way when her partner, Andrew Gomez, aged 27, turned out to be fluent in Spanish, stepping in to help solve the dilemma with Monty.

Monty, Ariana's very first foster dog, has undergone a remarkable transformation since his arrival in December.

Ariana is now trying to learn Spanish with Duolingo Image: Ariana Giampietro / SWNS

Being spoken to in his native language has made him "so much happier and more confident." He's now even taken to organizing tug-of-war games and playful wrestling with Ariana's other dog, Lucy.

A deep motivation drives Ariana in her journey of fostering Pitbulls.

Having lost her beloved Pitbull, Jack, to cancer in November 2022, she is determined to challenge the negative stereotypes surrounding this stigmatized breed, demonstrating that they are truly "loving and loyal" companions.

‘It’s weird – I had been telling my boyfriend for so long that I wanted to learn Spanish, and I downloaded Duolingo but never used it’, Ariana added.

‘Andrew now laughs about it because having a Spanish-speaking boyfriend never made me commit to Duolingo – but having a Spanish-speaking dog has.

‘The stigma says Pitbulls are violent and can’t be trained which is obviously not true at all.

‘They are so responsible and loyal and we need more loving people to be taking in these magnificent dogs.’