How smart is your dog/pet?

smurfbaby

Hi all,

Have often laughed at my dog (small terrier) when he does something which seems particularly astute! He seems to be very tuned in to anything that will benefit him-food, walks etc. A few examples

-He instinctively knows when it's time for his walks, every morning and evening he gets restless at exactly the same time. He will sit in front of me and growl, while shooting meaningful looks towards the place where his lead is kept.

-He knows words like 'lead', and 'walk' so we had to begin spelling those words when speaking on front of him. However he now seems to know the spellings as well! If I ask my bf where the l-e-a-d is the dog runs over and stand beside where its kept! He is also familiar with different people's names and darts over to the window/door to see if they are there.

-He seems very aware when someone is about to go somewhere, like if he hears car keys rattling or sees me picking up a coat. I have a particular sports bag that I use when i'm going to stay with family for the weekend. Once he sees the bag come out he sits patiently by the front door, determined that I'm not going without him! If he sees us going into the attic he thinks we are bringing suitcases down, and therefore going on holidays without him, and acts cold and aloof around us!

-He loves heat and has a remarkable ability to find a sunny spot in the house, or even somewhere where there are warm pipes running beneath the floor. More than once I will find one of my jumpers or jackets that he has conveniently dragged along with him and nested into a cosy pillow for his head!

-His hiding places for his treats/bones seem to be getting more innovative all the time! These include in the foot of one of my boots, in the bottom of my handbag, and most recently he balanced two remote controls carefully against either side of his bone!

Does anyone else have any funny or interesting stories to share? Or does my dog just have an underlying interest in keeping himself comfortable

tallus

Ok not my story mind, but a guy I worked with many years back had a pair of Shih Tzu's and when he got home from work and hung his jacket on the bannisters, the dogs would pull the jacket onto the floor and one would sit on the jacket while the other would pull him around the house,then they would switch places.
It was amazing to see.

rediguana

My cat won't make eye contact unless she wants something that second, then she bores into your very soul.

Okay, it's not PhD stuff, but she can communicate.

Somtimes she runs on the floor so fast though, that she skids and crashes into the wall/door. Then I wonder about her braininess.

Dyr

Once had a german shepherd who was psychic!

I swear i'd be sitting in the armchair and think "i'll get up and make a cuppa" and the dog wouldnt lift an eyebrow when i stood up. If I was sitting there and thought "i'll take the mutts for a walk" the fecker would jump up and be down the hall before my bum had barely left the seat.

It wasnt like I had a routine or i was letting slip with any "tells". I could never figure it out. He was really good at knowing when someone was coming home too, he'd get excited about five minutes before they'd arrive. Weird.

LuckyStar

Animals rely on body language completely so they can probably see every twitch we make that we wouldn't even notice!

I was watching a programme once about this, it was discussing this and their sense of hearing, sight etc, and their "6th" sense. A cat was filmed doing exactly what your dog did- about 5 minutes before her owner came home, she was moving around like she was expecting her owner to return. Her owner was not coming home at a regular time either. I think one of the theories on the program was that cats and dogs' hearing is so good that they can tell your car apart from others by the noise of it's engine. Apparently they can hear all the different individual noises your car makes, whereas we can only hear "vroom!!!".

Dyr

We didnt own cars though. I always presumed he was picking up some slight shift in body language but im damned if i know how

MsFifers

My cats are the other extreme. They are practically special needs cats.

If the door is ajar - but not enough for them to fit through, they sit there staring at it or else waving their paw in the gap - but it never occurs to them to push it open!!

I got one of those food containing ball things for them to play with - after about 4 months one of them has figured out if he hits it it will roll around and spill out the food. His sister though, just sits there staring at it - waiting for the magic!!! :rolleyes:

Just as well they are very good at cuddling! Or they would be completely useless !:D

LuckyStar

MsFifers wrote: »

If the door is ajar - but not enough for them to fit through, they sit there staring at it or else waving their paw in the gap - but it never occurs to them to push it open!!

It's amazing how much animals can have different personalities. One of my cats is exactly as you described. She just sits looking at the door and occasionally sticks her nose in the gap and cries out!

Our other cat can open any door that isn't locked! She uses her claws and won't stop til she has it open.

I have a parrot who knows my family by name. This is somthing that he picked up himself. Especially the kids. He sings christmas songs when he see's christmas lights and sings happy birthday if he see's candles.
Not only that but at night time if you are going to bed, he will say night night . Or if your coat goes on he will say bye bye. There is actually so much he does , i just dont have time to post it all.

tallus

I had a grey parrot who could mimic the Nokia "Bee" ringtone perfectly, if I left teh room he used to make the sound as he knew I'd come running thinking it was the phone. The longer it took me to get to the room, the louder he became. He used to do the sound of the microwave pinging as I walked into the kitchen. He used to throw food he didn't like back at me from the top of his cage. He used to try to feed me by regurgitating seeds up when I came home from work, god the list is endless. Such an amusing pet.

Bendihorse

Wow they are truely amazing, id love to have a parrot, must be the weirdest sensation to hear a human voice come out of a bird!!