Using artificial intelligence (AI) software to help analyse the calls of prairie dogs - a type of north American rodents - researchers found that they had "a sophisticated communication system that has all the aspects of a language".
"They have words for different species of predator and can describe the colour of clothes of a human, or the coat of coyotes or dogs," said Con Slobodchikoff, professor at Northern Arizona University in the US.
Slobodchikoff is convinced that other animals use similarly decipherable language and is attempting to raise money to develop a cat and dog translation device.
Researchers suggest that devices that can can translate animal language may be less than 10 years away.
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