A border collie that scientists say may be proof that dogs truly understand human language laps up media attention, but lets his owners do the talking.

Rico, the German dog who outshone all human competitors in a popular TV talent show, remembers the names of more than 200 objects and can figure out which item his master wants -- even if he has never heard the word before.

German researchers who have studied Rico for several years say he shows a skill, normal in young children, to form a rough meaning of a new word.

As they enthused at a news conference about him and the significance of his mental skills, he lay uninterested and nearly motionless under a table -- until a toy crocodile appeared.

Then he barked, awaited instructions and shook the relevant toy to photographers and reporters lying obediently at his feet.

"He just loves the cameras. He only has to hear a shutter opening to react," said Witold Krzeslowski, husband of Rico's owner Susanne Baus.

Rico developed his skills while laid low for nearly a year after a shoulder operation, with Baus trying to engage his mind and let his body rest.

"I discovered this talent and told my husband, who thought I was mad. At the start it was three to four objects, but it's risen to 200 or 250," she said. "I don't know what the limit might be, but we've now run out of space."

Rico won the German "Wetten Dass" (Wanna Bet?) TV program for weird talents five years ago and went on to be voted the best performer in the show's first 20 years.

But would-be collie owners be warned, Krzeslowski said.

"It can be hard to come home and get on with work. You first have to play 'fetch' with 20 objects. The only thing he accepts is when you are in bed. But he also gets up early in the morning."

聪明灵巧记忆力强 博德牧羊犬成大众焦点

科学家称，一只博德牧羊犬可能可以证明狗确实能够理解人类的语言，这引起了媒体的关注，那么还是让它的主人们来说话吧。

在一场很受欢迎的电视才艺表演中，这只名叫里科的德国犬战胜了所有的人类竞争对手。它能记住200多件物品的名字，还能判断出它的主人想要的物品——即使它从未听说过那个单词。

对里科进行了几年研究的德国研究者们说，它表现出一种儿童通常具有的技能，即能对一个新词汇形成一种粗略的概念。

在新闻发布会上，研究者们对它和它的思维能力的意义表示热切关注，但里科毫无兴趣，几乎一动不动地躺在桌子下直到一只玩具鳄鱼出现。

然后他开始咆哮，等待指示，冲着顺从地趴在它脚边的摄影师和记者挥动玩具鳄鱼。

里科的女主人苏珊·鲍丝的丈夫维托尔德·克热绍夫斯基说：“它就是喜欢摄影镜头，只要听到快门打开的声音，它就会有反应。”

里科曾做过肩部手术，它在术后将近一年的休养期间逐渐形成了这种技能。鲍丝试图通过调动它的思维来使它的身体得到休息。

她说：“我发现了（它的）才能并告诉了我丈夫，他认为我疯了。起初是三到四个物体，但后来上升到200到250个。我不知道极限可能是多少，但我们现在的空间已经不够用了。”

五年前，里科在展示“神奇的天才”的德国电视节目Wetten Dass（想打赌吗 ？）中获胜，接着被选为该节目二十年来的最佳表演者。

但是，克热绍夫斯基说他想提醒那些想成为牧羊犬主人的人们。

“回家后继续工作是很辛苦的。首先你必须用20个物体来玩‘取物’游戏，直到你睡觉，它才肯罢休，但它早上又起得很早。”

border collie：博德牧羊犬

lap up：舔；引起（关注）

outshine：胜过

shutter：快门