Once in the house, the dog becomes a member of the family and a devoted friend to its owner. Pets often surprise with their quick wits and do tricks worthy of hitting YouTube trends. Some owners report that their dogs sense mood swings, understand words and, in general, practically “read minds.” In addition to the individual characteristics of the animal, genetics is of great importance. We suggest that you familiarize yourself with the rating of the smartest dog breeds. The article will be especially useful for those who are just choosing a puppy and want their four-legged friend to be savvy and easy to train.
The study of the question of which dogs are the smartest in the world was taken up by dog handlers from the American Kennel Club. Their research was inspired by the work of Vancouver psychology professor Stanley Coren, The Intelligence of Dogs, first published in 1994. The book has been translated into 26 languages and has already been reprinted 16 times – and this is not the limit.
Determining a canine IQ is impossible without selection criteria. The rating “the smartest dog breeds” took into account:
- how many times you need to repeat the command for the dog to master it;
- the percentage of pets who completed the learned command accurately and on the first try.
- This approach allowed us to identify the most quick-witted breeds, but with reservations.
- Some dog breeds may be highly intelligent, but their mindset is different from others. Thus, dogs of hunting and sled breeds must have sufficient independence to make their own decisions in a critical situation. Because of this, hard workers are less eager to execute commands than pets. This does not mean that they are more stupid, but in the ranking of the smartest breeds they occupy lower places due to their relatively poor learning ability.
- “Young” breeds are easier to execute commands than “ancient” relatives, whose genotype is closer to the wolf. For this reason, the Afghan Hound and Basenji, one of the oldest breeds, are in the last places on the list.
- Dogs of medium and small size, as a rule, take places lower than real ones, all the fault is their natural stubbornness.
Thus, the top smartest dog breeds in the world is rather arbitrary. In addition, if you start a conversation about canine intelligence with a loving and caring owner, then, most likely, he will have the smartest dog!
The smartest dog in the world
The Border Collie is the smartest dog in the world. The intelligence of these amazing animals is comparable to that of a 3-year-old child. The breed was first mentioned in 1570, and official recognition came much later, in 1915. It is believed that the ancestors of the Border Collie were the working dogs of the Normans. During the Viking invasions of Scotland, their dogs ran away and interbred with local shepherds.
It is impossible to enumerate all the advantages of the border collie: an extraordinary mind, understanding eyes, incredible dedication, activity, kindness, caring … The dog quickly learns and immediately remembers new objects. In addition to their mental abilities, the Border Collie also excelled physically – they are great athletes and playmates. For representatives of this breed, there is no greater joy than running for a frisbee on a sunny day.
The smartest among the smartest is the Border Collie named Chaser. Its owner John Pillay always suspected that dogs are smarter than they seem, so he decided to teach his pet new words. To do this, he bought various toys, showed them to Chaser and called each item many times. At the age of 5 months, the dog knew about 50 words, and by the age of 3 its “vocabulary” had expanded to 1022 words. Now, when John asks to bring him this or that toy, Chaser unmistakably finds it among a bunch of others. This dog knows exactly what a raccoon, hippo or vampire looks like.
Another legendary border collie dog is Rico. He memorized more than 200 words, distinguishes them by ear and understands the meaning. In addition to his outstanding memory, Rico is notable for his quick wit – he can independently make the right decisions. Scientists from Leipzig undertook to study the dog’s abilities. In one experiment, they put the border collie and its owner in a room, and took their favorite toys to the next room. The owner then took turns naming the items and asking Rico to bring them. The dog coped with the task 38 times out of 40. After that, a new thing, unfamiliar to Rico, was added to the toys. When the owner asked to bring it, the dog herself guessed that the new word meant a new object, and correctly followed the command. The unique dog remembered all the words he learned even a month after the tests ended. Scientists concluded that Rico’s border collie learned the language in the same way that children did in the first years of life.