Who's a clever boy!
Bigger dogs like Labradors and Great Danes are 'more intelligent' than handbag-sized hounds, research claims
Bigger dogs are more intelligent than smaller ones, according to new research. Breeds such as Labradors and Great Danes have bigger brains than their pint-sized peers and this, researchers found, gives them improved 'cognitive function'.
This gives larger dogs increased self control and a high-performing short term memory. And it also means they obey the command 'stay' more than pint sized pooches. That's according to experts from the University of Arizona, who studied 7,000 pure bred dogs from 74 different breeds.
However, smaller breeds are as skilled at certain other tasks, such as going to where their owner is pointing when told, which is down to what researchers call 'social intelligence', the ability to use reasoning to obey commands.
'The jury is out on why, necessarily, brain size might relate to cognition,' said study author Daniel Horschler.
'We think of it as probably a proxy for something else going on, whether it's the number of neurons that matters or differences in connectivity between neurons.
'We think dogs are a really great test case for this because there's huge variation in brain size, to a degree you don't see in pretty much any other terrestrial mammals. You have chihuahuas versus Great Danes and everything in between.'
Researchers analysed the results where owners were asked to test their dog's abilities in a range of game-based activities.
The research was published in the journal Animal Cognition.