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Troy has increased his animal sounds and recognition. We’ve added the monkey, donkey, tiger, lion, bear, and wolf to the list of turkey, penguin, and bee.

When he sees or hears “monkey,” he’ll say, “ooh, ooh, ooh.” The funniest part is he did it when we were reading Sheep Trick or Treat by Nancy Shaw, and he saw one of the sheep dressed up like a gorilla for Halloween.

When he sees or hears “donkey,” he’ll say, “eh, uh, eh, uh.” He also did it when he saw a picture of him and me standing in front of an actual donkey.

“Tiger,” “lion,” and “bear” all elicit the same response, which is a cute, little growl.

And “wolf,” will generate a howl while tilting his head in the air. Sometimes, all three of us will howl at the moon at night, as it shines into our bedroom window. So, he's associated howling with the moon too.

I’ve also heard him trumpet while holding an elephant and grunt while holding a pig, but these sounds have not proven reproducible, so I’m not counting them yet. We've sort of turned him into a party attraction, asking him animal names while talking to people on the phone to get him to make the correct noises. Everyone enjoys his collection of wild animals.