There are many theories that speak of the type of intelligence possessed by dogs, although opinions on whether their IQ can be measured differ constantly. Over the last few years there have been several studies that address this issue, and that have even created a large number of tests to scientifically calculate the level of reasoning of these animals.
Among them, the one carried out in February of this year by the London Business School, in collaboration with the University of Edinburgh. A team of scientists created a canine intelligence test prototype with which they evaluated 68 copies of Border Collies, considered the most astute breed. This examination included tests in which the dogs had to distinguish between different amounts of food or reach portions of food hidden behind various obstacles.
The conclusions of the study, published in the journal Intelligence, stated that the dogs that finished the tests faster (each had an hour as a time limit), did so more precisely. The researchers also found that those who performed better on one test tended to be more efficient on the rest of them. In this way, they showed that canine intelligence works in a similar to human, perfectly differentiating the different types of cognitive tasks.
The objective of this research is to understand the relationship that exists between intelligence and health, something that can significantly help treat diseases such as dementia. As Rosalind Arden of the London Business School explains it: 'Dogs are one of the few animals that reproduce many of the key characteristics of dementia, so understanding their cognitive abilities could be valuable in helping us understand the causes of this disorder in humans and possibly trial treatments. "