Hungarian researchers from the University of Budapest found signs of giftedness in dogs. The results of the scientists’ research were presented in the journal Scientific Reports.
The authors analyzed the behavior of a large sample of “gifted” dogs, including 41 pets. All of them could remember the names of many of their toys and were chosen by scientists according to specific instructions.
More than half (56%) of the animals in the sample belonged to the border collie breed, which is considered the most intelligent breed in the world, followed by poodles and German shepherds. However, the sample also included other less intelligent breeds such as Pomeranians, Pekingese, Corgis, and several mixed breeds.
In addition to the ability to remember the names of large numbers of objects without requiring much training, researchers have identified other common characteristics; for example, the ability to remember large numbers of human words in general (a type of vocabulary) and a high learning speed.
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