by Lucius Trae

Created on: July 17, 2010

Judging intelligence in dogs is difficult. In humans, intelligence involves the ability to learn and apply knowledge; unfortunately, we don't have the luxury of knowing everything a dog is thinking. More specifically, someone who refuses to learn in school can explain why they are refusing - perhaps they find the material boring. Alternatively, it's difficult for us to determine when a dog is intelligent because it can't explain why it makes the choices it does.

For instance, one popular method of gauging a dog's intelligence is based on how well it responds to commands. When I found this out, I laughed. Now these people may be legitimate scientists, but I have to question their experience around dogs. If a dog fetches a ball and refuses to bring it back, that says nothing about its intelligence. It might have an owner that doesn't motivate it to return the ball. If the reward is not worth giving up the ball for, an intelligent dog might be just as likely to disobey an order. After all, the most brilliant people in human history aren't typically the order-following type. They think for themselves and make their own choices.

One of my dogs, for example, was learning to return when called. In some cases, he would visible struggle with the choice. He wanted to go in another direction and would come towards me, turn back a few steps, and pace back and forth until making a choice. Most dogs learn commands through conditioning rather than intelligence. The dog was evaluating the situation and if he decided coming when called wasn't the right choice, we don't know. To a dog, that group of friends, toy, or treat might be the equivalent of the greatest human experiences. It's rather judgmental to presume the dog is unintelligent.

Personally, I would recommend judging a dog's intelligence based on how successfully it pursues its interests. Like people, some dogs are more selfish than others, but one can judge what sort of behaviors they lean towards. I have two black labs, with about two years between them. The younger one, female, also has a brother living nearby that comes to visit. These dogs learn from each other, but Cleo (the girl) is the smartest of the three.

She is like most dogs, and she wants to play, sleep and eat. When she was a puppy, she learned to whine when she had to go out - something the other dog still does not know. In fact, she will whine to get attention occasionally, but it's primarily for the purposes of getting something. If her dish is empty,

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