A recent essay by award-winning writer Emily Anthes is titled “In Defense of Dumb Dogs: Your Pet Is (Probably) Not a Genius, and That’s OK” has generated countless emails, texts, and personal comments and discussions, so I decided it would be helpful to: (1) explain what Anthes is saying (or at least what I think he’s trying to communicate), (2) other myths about dog behavior, and (4) explain why cross-species comparisons about the cognitive and emotional lives of animals, including those in which dogs and other animals are compared to people of different ages.
I found Antes’s essay important and moving, and decided to write this piece because yesterday four people asked me questions along the lines of: “Aren’t you writing something about who dogs really are and why we should be so careful about labeling them ‘dumb’?” One asked: “Isn’t the real problem that so many people are dog illiterate and don’t know dogs well?”
Antes’ main message is well summed up in his last paragraph:
In fact, what makes dogs so special is their ability to form these relationships with us—bonds so strong that we’re all somehow convinced that our own canine companions are leading the collective pack. Watson may not know his hedgehog toy from his car, but he is – and I say this with all journalistic sincerity – the absolute best.
The importance of dispelling myths about dogs
There are many myths about dogs that seem to be facts. Many are popularized by the media and dog experts themselves, including that they are our best friends, they are unconditional lovers, they live in the moment, they are not dominant, they are not alpha dogs, they should not sleep with us, all dog parks are bad, we should not give them human food, radio and television should replace them.1
Dogs that come across as dumb, in fact, can be bored, emphasized because of conditions of captivity in which they are forced to liveor misunderstood by people who are “dog illiterate” or “dog illiterate”.
Who is smarter than whom?
In an interview in 2013 scientific america, Dog expert Dr. Brian Hare, co-author The genius of dogs with Vanessa Wood and founder Duke Canine Recognition The Center was asked, “What is the biggest misconception people have about dog intelligence?” He the answer: “There are those who are ‘knowing’ dogs and ‘dumb’ dogs. intelligenceas if there is only one type of intelligence that you have more or less of.”
The rabbit is right on the mark. There are multiple intelligences in dogs and other animals, and individual differences are to be expected. Differences are the rule, not the exception. Research has shown that many different variables can affect a dog’s performance in a laboratory environment, and I often wonder how the data collected in controlled experiments transfer to dogs in real life, as dogs run around in dog parks and other environments, dealing with changing social contexts and physical environments.
The word “intelligence” generally refers to an individual’s ability to acquire knowledge and use it to adapt to different situations – to do what is needed to perform different tasks and survive. A friend of mine once told me about the free-ranging dogs he knew in a small town in Mexico who were good at walking the streets and surviving harsh conditions, but they didn’t listen to people very well. Some were adept at finding and stealing food and avoiding puppies, unwanted dogs and people. Some were good at “playing” people for food, while others were not. On the contrary, I have known several intelligent, cunning and adaptable dogs who were not street smart and probably would not have made it in such an environment. However, the few people I live with in my house can easily steal my food and another dog’s food in a heartbeat without either of us knowing what’s going on.
Which dogs were “smarter” and which were “dumb”? No, of course. Relatively, these dogs were the same, but they adapted their intelligence to different conditions. Outside of these contexts, they can seem pretty “dumb” to us. I’ve lived with and met enough dogs to know that saying one is smarter than another is usually a gross misrepresentation of who they really are.
The questions I get asked most often have to do with species differences in intelligence – for example, are dogs smarter than cats, birds smarter than fish. I always say that animals should do what is right for them “card-carrying” members of their speciesand we have to remember that there are plenty of non-humans superior to us in many ways, so the question of comparing different species doesn’t really matter much to me. Thus, I really like how Hare and Woods write about this topic:
“The cognitive approach celebrates the different types of intelligence and frees us from the idea that intelligence is a linear scale with sea sponges at the bottom and humans at the top. Asking if a dolphin is smarter than a crow is like asking if a hammer is better than a saw. Which tool is better depends on the task at hand or if you regularly encounter animals. Repeat.”
But people still ask me, “What about dogs that really act like idiots?” Aren’t dogs really brave? Again, we have to be careful about describing dogs in this way. One of my favorite quotes about how we treat other animals comes from the Hungarian anatomist János Szentagotai, who famously noted, “There are no ‘stupid’ animals; only careless observations and poorly designed experiments.” We have long known that dogs are not brain dead and wolves are not dumb.
In January 2017, Ian Hoffman published an essay titled “To judge how smart dogs are, people learn new tricks.” A quote from dog researcher Dr. Clive Wynne caught my eye: “What we really need from our dogs is love. My own dog is an idiot, but he’s a lovable idiot.”
Coda: It is important to understand and appreciate individual differences in intelligence among dogs and other animals
Calling a dog stupid is wrong, and cross-species comparisons are fraught with confusion. I know it’s kind of cute to make a catchy statement like calling a dog a Mongolian, but it’s also very misleading.
It’s time we stop using such words and comparisons and focus on the dogs individuals. doesn’t really exist”the dog,” and what is so exciting about studying the cognitive and emotional lives of dogs and other animals is how much individual variation exists among members of the same species.
