Ever wondered which breed is top dog ?
Have you ever noticed how some dogs are generally quicker at responding and easier to train then others? Or have you notices how specific breeds of dogs get used for specific jobs. Look at law enforcement for example, In most countries police use German Shepherd's and most security firms use Dobermans or Rottweilers.
There isn't really a smart or dumb dog, Just a dog that is not living to its full potential. Some dogs will have been bred for hunting while other dogs were bred for guarding. Geniuses such as Albert Einstein really excelled in his field but always struggled with maths.
A recent study by Stanley Coren ph.D looked at the different aspects of a dogs intelligence and how these are influence their general intelligence. You can break dog intelligence down into 3 major parts, Instinctive intelligence, Adaptive intelligence and working obedience intelligence.
Instinctive Intelligence
This refers to what we talked about earlier, What the dog is bred to do. Herd dogs were bred to herd animals, Run for long distances and need some guidance from a human to do their jobs. Retrieving breeds were used for hunting and primarily to retrieve animals. Guard dogs were meant to protect property or people and terriers for controlling vermin. In this respect one dog could not be classes as smarter than another dog when it is being used for something it was never bred for.
Adaptive Intelligence
This looks at how a dog can learn from their surroundings and environment and teach themselves. Certain breeds will have the same instinctive intelligence but will adapt differently to a space. This will depend on the dog itself and not necessarily the breed. You could say this is an indication of the dogs intelligence as the same breed may excel where another dog from that breed didn't do as well.
Working Obedience Intelligence
The final aspect is how a dog responds to commands from a human. This is the most common type of intelligence and one what most people think of when we mention how intelligent a dog is. This aspect is also probably the best way in establishing the most intelligent dog breed as it looks at how dogs respond to commands outside of their instinctive and adaptive intelligence.
Top 10 Dog Breeds
In terms of working and obedience intelligence
Border Collie
Poodle
German Shepherd Dog
Golden Retriever
Doberman Pinscher
Shetland Sheepdog
Labrador Retriever
Papillon
Rottweiler
Australian Cattle Dog
Does this mean that you should only get a dog in the top 10? Not really. Intelligent dog breeds will need a lot of exercise, Challenging physically and mentally as well as discipline so you will have your work cut out. Ideally you should match the dogs temperament to your own personality and lifestyle. If you are a high energy person then you should look for a dog that matches this as you can walk them regularly and they can keep up with you. If you are a low energy person then you should find a dog that is similar in energy.
When it comes to training your dog though you can however use methods that can help to improve their working obedience and intelligence. There is a method that works on the neural plasticity of the brain and makes learning fun and engaging for you and your dog. The method is called brain training for dogs, You can check it out by clicking here.
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