Dog Intelligence Test:
Smart, or Just Well-Trained?
Take the Mastorrencito IQ Test and find out if your dog is a little Einstein, a delegation specialist, or a domestic public hazard.
According to the expertsThe «officially» smartest dogs
There’s a list that keeps coming up whenever dog intelligence is discussed. Professor Stanley Coren put it together from the responses of dog obedience judges, and it mostly measures how fast a breed learns and obeys new commands.
- Border Collie
- Poodle
- German Shepherd
- Golden Retriever
- Doberman Pinscher
- Shetland Sheepdog
- Labrador Retriever
- Papillon
- Rottweiler
- Australian Cattle Dog
And that’s all very serious. But we’ve lived with Manuela, Mamas, Mastitwo and Masto, and we have one objection: that list doesn’t measure the ability to open a door the wrong way round, on a staircase, without opposable thumbs.
Because Manuela was a Golden Retriever — fourth on the official ranking. But at Mas Torrencito, she was, without question, number one.
Our real rankingFour dogs, four different ways of being clever
Manuela taught herself to open doors — some opened the wrong way, one was on a staircase. Mamas watched the system and learned by observing. Mastitwo chose headbutting: less elegant, zero lack of commitment. And Masto went further still: he doesn’t open doors, he barks until we open them for him. He isn’t less smart. He’s understood delegation.
Manuela
Mamas
Mastitwo
Masto
A farmhouse-table profile, not a lab one: each dog excels at their own specialty, exactly as we’ve watched them live it day to day in the house.
What science actually saysDog intelligence isn’t a single line-up
Current science complicates the famous ranking quite a bit. There’s no single «dog intelligence» that can line every dog up from smartest to least smart. Researchers study different capacities: understanding human gestures, solving spatial problems, controlling impulses, remembering, persisting through a challenge, or seeking help when something has no solution.
It’s also been shown that dogs learn by watching other dogs and humans. So Mamas watching Manuela with a «oh, so that’s how it works» expression wasn’t copying — it was continuing education. And when a problem is impossible, many dogs look at, glance back and forth toward, or head straight for their person. Which means the Masto method — barking until someone with thumbs shows up — has more science behind it than it seems.
Is your dog really smart… or has they trained you perfectly?
Answer the 7 questions to find your dog’s Mastorrencito IQ, from 0 to 21. Fair warning: this doesn’t measure real intelligence. It measures something more useful — how much they’ve organized your life around them.
The catchIf you got a low score, don’t worry
If your dog looks at you to open doors, fetch balls, or get the treat out of a toy, maybe they haven’t failed. Maybe they’ve passed the most important exam of all: understanding that with you around, they don’t have to do it alone. That was Masto — and that’s why, even though he’s fourth in our ranking, he’s probably the real winner of everyday life.
Manuela solved. Mamas learned. Mastitwo persisted. Masto delegated. Four different ways of being clever, four different ways of getting exactly what they wanted.
What Mastorrencito IQ did your dog get, and what’s the smartest — or most manipulative — thing they’ve ever done? Tell us in the comments.
Frequently asked questionsBefore you write to us
Keep readingMore on traveling seriously with dogs
Mas Torrencito — Parets d’Empordà, Girona. La primera casa rural para mascotas que acepta personas.
