Dog intelligence is usually determined by reports of the judges who oversee obedience trials. Stanley Coren, who is the author of The Intelligence of Dogs bases his ranking of intelligence on one yardstick—outstanding trainability. This would be defined by how quickly the breed learns commands and how often the breed follows through with given commands, preferably more than 9 out of 10 times.
He has chosen the following as his top five:
- Border Collie excels at dog tricks and is said to be able to recall over 1,000 words.
- Poodle who originally was bred as a water dog for hunting in Germany as well as a working dog with the military. Poodles often do well in agility trials.
- German Shepherd was also trained as a working dog who accompanied soldiers. As well as a high I.Q., the German shepherd has a strong sense of smell which is why they are often used by police in searches for drugs or bombs. They can be aggressively protective.
- Golden Retriever was bred as a hunter and a water retriever. They generally have a gentle temperament which allows them to work well with people, such as being a guide dog for the blind.
- Doberman Pinscher is intelligent and easily trained. They are strong and can be intimidating. Recent training has been designed to make them less aggressive.
There can be some negatives to high intelligence. They must be kept occupied or they may find negative ways to occupy themselves. They are great at learning skills on their own as well as from a trainer, but these may not always be acceptable skills.
A dog’s relationship with his/her human companion is far more meaningful than intelligence.