[Sally Le Page (OP)]

David asked us:

"Isn't it strange how we like to compare wild animals and human beings in regard to intelligence, and give wild animals various tests to measure this intelligence? However, we do not look at our pet dog and how much more intelligent they are in doing tasks most wild animals would fail to do. Not only this, but the psychological connection is very much more dominant in pet dogs than there is of any other animal. We ignore this and do not take it into consideration, as a prime example of a higher level of intelligence, just how much more intelligent your average pet dog is.

A very good example of this is the psychological signs your pet dog can read and express towards their owners in terms of knowing how you feel, act accordingly to this emotion and to express this with their own interpretation of this human trait. We do not give credit to the dog in how much it can show intelligence and its own emotion expressed in such a way in which it can be read.

Has there been any scientific research and tests in measuring the intelligence of your average pet dog and comparing it with other animals either wild or domesticated?"

What do you think?

[Colin2B]

Has there been any scientific research and tests in measuring the intelligence of your average pet dog and comparing it with other animals either wild or domesticated?"[/b][/i]

What do you think?

I did see an experiment on pigs which concluded that they are more intelligent than dogs.
The problem for me is how you define the comparative criteria for intelligence, there have been some glaring errors in comparing different human cultures.

[jfoldbar]

i remember once reading about the pig being more intelligent than the dog, and the researcher explained it kinda like this.
if a dog is carrying a stick in its mouth, and then i tries to get through the door, the stick is too big and the dog needs to turn its head to maneuver the stick. however the dog needed to, 1, first see that it couldnt go, 2 learn that the reason it couldnt go was because of the stick in its mouth, 3, learn that tilting its head changed to stick size in relation to door, 4 how do i need to tilt my head to get through the door...........eventually the dog learned this.
however, if a pig was interested in picking up sticks, it would start off at step 4, skipping the first 3 steps.

[Bored chemist]

How does the intelligence of pet dogs compare to other animals?
They are brighter than some of the trolls on tis forum.

[evan_au]

There have been tests comparing domesticated dogs to their wild cousins, like wolves.

I saw a test where there was food visible in a rectangular wire enclosure (perhaps 5 meters by 3 meters). The far side had no fence (as I recall).
- The dog and their owner were standing by the long side of the rectangle. The dog ran to the fence, and might have tried a meter or so to the left and right. After a few seconds, most dogs gave up, and looked to their owner for guidance.
- In contrast, the wolves were much more adventurous, and tried along the entire length of the enclosure, and around the sides. Most of them solved it. They did not look to a human for guidance.
- So you could say we have bred them for dependence, which could also be viewed as stupidity.

Similar findings here:

In some kinds of tasks, a dog and a human will do better than either alone.
Apart from catching balls (solving quadratic equations with a negative exponential term), and running (solving the equations for 4 linked pendulums = chaotic motion), dogs don't do too well with physics...

[Just thinking]

A very good example of this is the psychological signs your pet dog can read and express towards their owners in terms of knowing how you feel, act accordingly to this emotion and to express this with their own interpretation of this human trait.

Hi Sally this is a very interesting set of questions that you have put forward. As a big dog lover my self I am happy to share some of my thoughts on this subject. First I think that dogs are very intelligent animals wild or domestic. Domestic dogs have most of the traits that are found in the wild variety hunting skills survival tactics and mob mentality. Our family dogs can take on so much more as they are comfortable and compatible with our lives. The list of tricks and commands that a dog can learn is too many to list. dog make the very best of companions for people and must be greatly respected and love for this trait. Most dogs are comfortable and more than manageable as indoor members to our families so just an example of another very intelligent animal is the chimpanzee maybe even smarter than dogs but not too good in the average home as they are very naughty and will rip a home to pieces.