The Daily Yap....News for Dogs....

ScienceDaily (Aug. 10, 2009) — Although you wouldn't want one to balance your checkbook, dogs can count.

They can also understand more than 150 words and intentionally deceive other dogs and people to get treats, according to psychologist and leading canine researcher Stanley Coren, PhD, of the University of British Columbia. He spoke Saturday on the topic "How Dogs Think" at the American Psychological Association's 117th Annual Convention.
Coren, author of more than a half-dozen popular books on dogs and dog behavior, has reviewed numerous studies to conclude that dogs have the ability to solve complex problems and are more like humans and other higher primates than previously thought.
"We all want insight into how our furry companions think, and we want to understand the silly, quirky and apparently irrational behaviors [that] Lassie or Rover demonstrate," Coren said in an interview. "Their stunning flashes of brilliance and creativity are reminders that they may not be Einsteins but are sure closer to humans than we thought."
According to several behavioral measures, Coren says dogs' mental abilities are close to a human child age 2 to 2.5 years.
The intelligence of various types of dogs does differ and the dog's breed determines some of these differences, Coren says. "There are three types of dog intelligence: instinctive (what the dog is bred to do), adaptive (how well the dog learns from its environment to solve problems) and working and obedience (the equivalent of 'school learning')."
Data from 208 dog obedience judges from the United States and Canada showed the differences in working and obedience intelligence of dog breeds, according to Coren. "Border collies are number one; poodles are second, followed by German shepherds. Fourth on the list is golden retrievers; fifth, dobermans; sixth, Shetland sheepdogs; and finally, Labrador retrievers," said Coren.
As for language, the average dog can learn 165 words, including signals, and the "super dogs" (those in the top 20 percent of dog intelligence) can learn 250 words, Coren says. "The upper limit of dogs' ability to learn language is partly based on a study of a border collie named Rico who showed knowledge of 200 spoken words and demonstrated 'fast-track learning,' which scientists believed to be found only in humans and language learning apes," Coren said.
Dogs can also count up to four or five, said Coren. And they have a basic understanding of arithmetic and will notice errors in simple computations, such as 1+1=1 or 1+1=3.
Four studies he examined looked how dogs solve spatial problems by modeling human or other dogs' behavior using a barrier type problem. Through observation, Coren said, dogs can learn the location of valued items (treats), better routes in the environment (the fastest way to a favorite chair), how to operate mechanisms (such as latches and simple machines) and the meaning of words and symbolic concepts (sometimes by simply listening to people speak and watching their actions).
During play, dogs are capable of deliberately trying to deceive other dogs and people in order to get rewards, said Coren. "And they are nearly as successful in deceiving humans as humans are in deceiving dogs."

Hmmm..how smart are the humans who need a scientist to work this out for them....come on guys....we are even smarter than your realise....

Wednesday, September 10, 2008

Dragons, sleeps and foreign objects

Today I protected my owner from the sucking dragon. She was wrestling with it all over the lounge room carpet! Poor thing, lucky I was there. I yapped my darnedest and even got my teeth into the thing a few times, eventually I exhausted it and it collapsed. My human put it away in the closet and locked the door so it could not get out. Sometimes she’s sensible. (I just do not understand why she forgets where she has it caged up and opens the closet all the time….it gets out then and I have to set to it again! Really…)

After that I was exhausted too so a nap was in order. The problem with naps is the dreams….sometimes I relive my fights with evil…. A lunge this way/a bite over there/ running back and forth/ leaping into the air/ (my bravery knows no bounds) but then I wake up and discover some human smirking at me….sure my legs have been twitching mercilessly and dribble is forming around my chin, but the fight for Good isn’t easy and each day is a new action! They take me for granted, they do!

Anyway, I am priming for the afternoon walk now….its a challenge, making sure everyone is safe as we stroll down the street. I like to go fast so that we are a moving target, which is of course harder to catch, just in case there is something out there waiting to get us, you never know???? Humans like to go slow…have they no concept of danger? Then there are the other issues, like distracting female dogs which do occasionally (I must secretly admit) veer me off course and my diligence to the fight against evil! (Hey... even James Bond enjoyed a little female fur!) I also have to deal with puddles of water, which must all be tested against poison, bits of old food lying about to trap the unsuspecting, which needless to say also need to be checked for foreign substances, and all manner of bird, which as we all know are air battalion and cannot by any means all be assumed to be on our side. It’s just more physically and mentally exhausting work in the fight against evil, as you can imagine…. I have to prepare myself… stretch and practice my moves, keep fit…..so I think I will just go for a little run around the house and get some speed up……see ya…….wheeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee
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2 comments:

DESERT PUPS said...

Woof Sami

You sure have an exciting life. Fighting dragons and everything. We could have used you when the Monster came to our house. Check it out in our archives.

Desert Pups

September 16, 2008 at 1:15 PM
bevm said...

Ye...monster slayer supreme I am sami

September 16, 2008 at 5:06 PM

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