Top 5 Smartest Dog Breeds
(And the 5 Most Intellectually Challenged!)
by www.SixWise.com

Dogs are uncanny in their ability to read their pet owner’s minds … cuddling up next to us when we’re upset or sick, wagging their tails when we’re excited. And as it turns out, this intelligence is not just in our minds!

Dogs really are smart, and a new study found that even dogs with average “smarts” have the mental abilities of a 2-year-old child.

The findings, which were presented at the American Psychological Association's annual convention in Toronto, Canada, found that the average dog can count to about 5, reason, and understand around 165 words (including signs, signals and gestures).

“We all want insight into how our furry companions think, and we want to understand the silly, quirky and apparently irrational behaviors [that] Lassie or Rover demonstrate," Stanley Coren, a canine expert and professor emeritus at the University of British Columbia, told LiveScience. "Their stunning flashes of brilliance and creativity are reminders that they may not be Einsteins but are sure closer to humans than we thought."

Of course, like humans, some dogs are smarter than others. Those breeds at the top of the list, which Coren calls “super breeds,” have the intelligence level of a 2.5-year-old, and can understand up to 250 words.

For his book The Intelligence of Dogs, Coren asked more than 200 dog-obedience judges to rank 110 breeds according to intelligence. Those that made the top of the list are those more recently developed breeds, which have been bred to be more responsive to human beings.

So if your dog didn’t make the top of the list, it could be because his breed was developed to follow “instinctive” intelligence, rather than learning how to count and understand language.

"It's important to note that these breeds which don't do as well tend to be considerably older breeds," Cohen told LiveScience. "They were developed when the task of a hound was to find something by smell or sight."

Top Five Smartest Dog Breeds

1. Border collies

2. Poodles

3. German shepherds

4. Golden retrievers

5. Doberman pinchers

The Five “Least Smart” Dog Breeds (Out of 110)

106. Borzoi

107. Chow chow

108. Bulldog

109. Basenji

110. Afghan hound

Does This Match Up With the 10 Most Popular Dog Breeds?

The American Kennel Club has recently announced the most popular dogs in the United States in 2009, and, interestingly, Americans preference for dog breeds spans the ranks of smartest to least smart (but perhaps even more lovable?).

2009 Most Popular Dogs in the U.S.

1. Labrador Retriever

2. German Shepherd Dog

3. Yorkshire Terrier

4. Golden Retriever

5. Beagle

6. Boxer

7. Bulldog

8. Dachshund

9. Poodle

10. Shih Tzu

Of course, no matter where your dog falls on the list of smarts or popularity, most pet owners will agree wholeheartedly that pets give back much more than they receive in the form of companionship and love.

If you’d like to return the love and give your pet the longest, happiest, healthiest life possible, Sixwise.com highly recommends visiting GreenerWiener.com now to view their unique line of all-natural pet products to enhance the health and well-being of your furry little ones.

Recommended Reading

What’s Really in Your Dog’s Food? Top Reasons Why Your Pet’s Food Could be Slowly Killing Him

Pet Obesity is Now the Leading Cause of Preventable Death in Dogs and Cats

Sources

American Kennel Club January 27, 2010

MSNBC.com August 9, 2009

CNN.com August 8, 2009