Domesticated Dogs Are Dumber Than Wild Ones, Tests Show

Your dog might not do well on the same basic intelligence test a wild dog or a wolf would pass with flying colors. That's what new research done at the Dingo Discover Center shows. Wild canids that were never trained and never socialized beat the socks off domesticated dogs when it comes to problem solving skills.

A Test Domesticated Dogs Failed

Example: One part of the test included placing food on the other side of a fence. The only way dog, dingo or wolf could get to it was to walk away from the food up to some swinging doors, figure out if the door swung in or out, enter and double back to the food. Dingoes did it in 20 seconds. Pampered pet dogs stood on the other side of the fence looking confused, pawing at the fence, trying to dig under it and barking in futility. How embarrassing.

The pet dogs just assumed that if they barked for help and tried to tear the fence down, some human (like you) would come a-running to figure it out for them. So who is to blame for their confusion and helplessness? Apparently, that would be you. And me, and every other dog lover who has been solving pooch problems for generations.

Domesticated Dogs Are Better at Parties

Of course, pet dogs are far superior in social situations to wild canines, none of whom/which would be welcome at your children's birthday parties. It's our pets' "non-social problem-solving skills" that have been lost due to generations of coddling, according to the study done in Victoria, Australia at the Dingo Discovery Center. Not only that, the research suggests this is a permanent loss, now "hardwired" genetically into dogs.

In fact, "It would take a lot of generations of successful dogs to start fostering any such cognitive abilities required for survival in the wild," Bradley Smith, a researcher in the School of Psychology at the University of South Australia, says. The study authored by Smith and colleague Carla Litchfield, is considered so groundbreaking it has been accepted for publication in the journal, Animal Behavior. Why, those darn dingoes even figured out how to use ropes and other tools. (Although the animal psychologists did not explain why a dingo even needs a rope.)

Does This Truly Mean Our Dogs Are Dumb?

Is this really a matter of concern? Do our pets even need to know how to forage for food? Untie ropes? Kill and eat? In fact, when they do go out for their own groceries, and bring back a baby rabbit or two, we're not too happy with them.

Dog On a Deserted Island Survives

That was no dingo, that was a coddled family pet who had to swim shark-infested waters for six miles to a deserted island, where she survived by killing and eating wild baby goats. This dog did not have generations to restore her survival skill DNA.. It did take a few months for Sophie to get the hang of island life; when rescued, it took longer than that to be re-domesticated. This dog had reverted to problem solving skills needed for survival in the wild, and it did not make her very pleasant to be around.

Domesticated Dogs Can Be Trained to High Levels of Expertise As Bomb-Sniffing Dogs.

Go on, Mr. Animal Psychologist, try to train a wolf to sniff for bombs as trained police dogs do. See if a dingo can detect the onset of an epileptic seizure as service dogs are taught to do. Maybe dogs are smart enough to realize that, as a rule, killing wild game and working with ropes is not relevant to their lifestyle; saving and enhancing human lives is.

Now when you think about it, who is the dummy? The dingo who will go through a maze to get to food, or the pet who barks and gets you to do it for him?

Sources:

Discovery News: Dogs Dumbed Down

Daily Mail, UK: Pets unable to think for themselves