What Kind of Smart is Your Dog?

Dogs are anything but “dumb animals.” But there are different kinds of intelligence and not all dogs are smart the same way.

We see three primary types of dog smarts:

• Trainability
• Problem Solving
• Charming

Doing What We Ask

Most of the lists we see about the intelligence of different breeds of dogs focus on the first kind of smart. It’s probably the aspect of intelligence that’s most human-designed. People valued the dog who could do the job they needed done. When a dog was great at herding sheep, or flushing game, that’s the dog whose progeny was highly sought. Those useful genes got perpetuated.

But most dogs these days don’t do the jobs their breeds were designed for. It’s hard to picture a Poodle in show coat diving into ponds for birds.

Trainability is a double-edged sword. Dogs dependent on human direction always need something to do. That can make them hard to live with. It’s annoying if somebody’s in your face all day asking “What can I do for you now?”

Problem Solving

These are the dogs who cause the most trouble. They want something, like the pie cooling on the counter, and figure out a way to get it. We’ve heard about dogs learning to open cabinets to get the treats, pulling drawers open for the socks, and dumping the trash for the scraps. These are the dogs who benefit from a lick mat. It keeps them occupied as long as the peanut butter lasts.

In all honesty, this kind of smart dog is our favorite. You’ll never be bored with a problem-solver. You may get tired of checking that all surfaces are clear before you leave the house. But you’ll never lack for entertainment, either. 

Charming

It was challenging to come up with a name for this aspect of intelligence. The first label we thought of was “Selfish,” which it is. But we didn’t want it to sound so negative. Then we tried “Manipulative,” but that didn’t work either. We finally landed on “Charming.” It fits perfectly because these dogs navigate the world by being impossible to say 'no' to.

Charming dogs read their people like expert psychologists. They know which buttons to push, when to push them, and when to back off. They know the exact angle of the head tilt to use, when to bat their puppy-dog eyes, and the right amount of pressure to put on the paw on your arm. 

Sharp As Tacks

While most dogs fall primarily into one of our three styles of smart, the lines are pretty fluid. Our problem-solving Brussels Griffons were highly trainable, as long as we used the good treats. 

Hope’s incredibly charming French Bulldog Teddy was the one discovered on the kitchen counter headed for the treat jar. Recreating the crime, we saw him jump from the floor to the chair, to the table, to the counter. He found a way.

Every Dog Can Learn

We’ve never met a dog that couldn’t be trained. Some loved it from the get-go. Others had to be convinced that it was fun. But among dog trainers there’s a saying, “Every dog is trained to its owners’ level of comfort.” Dogs are born knowing how to fill their primary role as our very dear companions.