Hunger for Words

Home
United States
San Diego, CA
Hunger for Words

Hi! I'm Christina Hunger, the speech-language pathologist who discovered how dogs can talk.

NYT Bestselling Author
Founder of Hunger for Words Talking Pet Buttons
[email protected]
Buttons, Books, & Training 👇🏼

08/31/2026

My oldest turned 4 recently, and I stopped for a second to appreciate just how far we’ve come with kids + Stella’s buttons!

Watching these clips back to back from him exploring the buttons as a baby, to pressing them and imitating the words, to actually using them meaningfully with Stella now is so special.

If you have a baby or young toddler and a pet who uses buttons, I’m not going to lie…this stage can be CHAOTIC.

But I hope this shows the light at the end of the tunnel, and how kids can learn to use the buttons meaningfully with their animals and develop more of a two way relationship with them 💜

08/25/2026

Becoming a mom has given me a new lens for so many things I’ve spent years observing with Stella.

This is one I’ve been thinking about a lot lately 💜

08/24/2026

Before I had the idea to create a way for dogs to say words, I noticed that Stella responded really well when I narrated what was happening with simple words, just like I did at work with young children every day.

Even without buttons, you can help your dog understand a lot by talking to them in simple language about what’s happening and using the same words consistently.

This video is a perfect example. I was in the middle of something when Stella asked to go to the park, so I told her we could go when I was all done.

She didn’t keep whining or asking. She hopped up on the couch and waited for me to finish.

Sure enough as soon as I was done, she trotted to the door and waited for me to get her harness and leash on.

08/20/2026

Teaching your dog to use buttons can come with SO many questions and decisions. What word should I add next? When are they ready for it? How should I teach it? Am I doing this right?

I wanted Your Dog Can Talk to take most of that guesswork out of the process.

Activities like Communication Detective give you a simple next step and help you make decisions based on YOUR dog , what they care about, what they’re already communicating, and where they are in the learning process.

You don’t have to figure it all out on your own!

Your Dog Can Talk is available anywhere books are sold 🐶 🖲️

08/18/2026

Stella’s buttons help me remember how important seemingly small decisions can be to her throughout the day.

The bottom half of our living room blinds were closed when Stella said “look outside.”

I pushed the blinds up, and she looked out, jumped up to get a better view, looked out the sunroom windows too, then went back to her buttons and said “happy.”

She stayed there looking outside for over three minutes before moving on with her day 💜

08/14/2026

We were playing a game of musical beds in the middle of the night, and Stella had to make sure I knew!

08/12/2026

I found this letter I wrote to Stella in my phone notes in the middle of the night, shortly after bringing home my second baby two years ago.

I had completely forgotten about it until I was looking for something else and it popped up.

Reading it two years later made me emotional all over again.

I’m so proud of how Stella has grown alongside me through every version of our life together. I just hope she knows how much I’ve always loved her 💜

08/10/2026

Stella asks for her breakfast and dinner every single day, without fail!

People always joke that if their dog could talk, they’d only ask for food. Stella definitely talks about food every day. But she also talks about playing, going places, people, things she notices, how she feels, and more.

08/06/2026

Water, water everywhere…and not asking for a drink 🤓

08/04/2026

Last winter, at one of my book events, I shared something that’s been on my mind since the very beginning of Stella’s journey.

One of my greatest hopes wasn’t just that people would see dogs communicate differently. It was that dogs using buttons might also make communication devices feel a little more familiar to the everyday person.

For many families, AAC is something they don’t even know exists until someone they love needs it. I imagined a future where dogs using buttons became a bridge that helped a parent, grandparent, teacher, or friend recognize that communication devices exist and wonder, “Could this help someone I love?”

Over the years, I’ve received hundreds of messages from families telling me that’s exactly what happened.

Now I’m seeing that bridge in my own home.

When I showed my 3-year-old an AAC device I use with kids, I simply said, “It’s like Stella’s buttons.”

Instantly it clicked, and he couldn’t wait to try for himself.

Address

San Diego, CA

Website

https://linktr.ee/Hunger4words

Alerts

Be the first to know and let us send you an email when Hunger for Words posts news and promotions. Your email address will not be used for any other purpose, and you can unsubscribe at any time.

Featured

healbodymindspirit.info
1286 University Avenue #429

Want your practice to be the top-listed Clinic in San Diego?