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Back in the day, it was believed that dogs only had short-term memory. But we all know that dogs have a great memory, bot long-and-short-term. While most dogs are as smart as 2-3-year old kids, some outshine the rest with their intelligence.

A look at the smartest dogs

Border Collie

Always on the lookout for something new, Border Collies are some of the world’s smartest dogs. These dogs listen to commands, whistles, voice tones, and hand signals. They’re also excellent sheepherders (if that’s your jam) and understand more words than most dogs.

Poodle

Poodles rank second in intelligence among all dogs, and they’re 7^th when it comes to popularity across the world. These active dogs are hypoallergenic, making them an excellent choice for people that have allergic reactions when dogs are in the vicinity. Poodles are easy to train and were bred to track, hunt, retrieve, and obey commands. On average, poodles can learn a minimum of 200 words!

German Shepherd

German Shepherds are fantastic dogs and make great family pets and working dogs. This dog loves to work next to humans, which makes them outstanding guard dogs. Courageous, confident, and smart, the German Shepherd is easy to train and loves to please his humans. They are also fiercely loyal and amazing with kids.

Golden Retriever

Bred to retrieve, the Golden Retriever is an eager genius. These dogs will go out of their way to please their family members and make for great assistant dogs. Known to be service dogs, Retrievers are excellent when it comes to assisting in search and rescue missions and assisting the blind.

Doberman

Bred to be a war dog, it’s not hard to understand the Doberman’s looks and fearless attitude. These dogs live to serve and protect. Besides the fact that they make excellent guard dogs, they’re also fantastic family pets. With superior strength, endurance, and speed, the Doberman is very energetic and needs to exercise regularly to lead a long, healthy life.

Labrador Retriever

People often confuse the Labrador Retriever with the Golden Retriever, even though both breeds are equally as intellectual. Labradors are known to be family dogs because they are almost over-eager to please. They also make for great guide and rescue dogs.

Rottweiler

Rottweilers are brilliant service dogs, herders, therapy animals, obedience competitors, and devoted companions. It takes a little more effort to properly train and exercise this breed, which is why they need engaged owners. In return for their owner’s input, Rottweilers spoil their families with an abundance of love and loyalty.

Final thoughts

While it might be awesome to own one of the smartest dogs, intellectually gifted breeds can quickly get bored. Dogs are a lot like toddlers, and when they get bored, they often get destructive too. If you own one of these breeds, it’s essential to keep them occupied and exercise them frequently.

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Why does excessive barking happen?

Since it’s one of the main ways in which they communicate, dogs bark for a variety of reasons. They also have various types of barks. If you’re trying to address your dog’s barking problems, the first step is to determine what’s causing it. Here are some reasons why dogs bark:

Protecting their territory

Whenever they want to warn others that they own a specific territory, dogs bark and might even attack if their space is being threatened. Territorial dogs will bark louder as the threat gets closer.

Fear

Just like humans yell when they get a fright, dogs bark when they’re scared. Anxious barking can also be a form of self-soothing and these are the kind of high-pitched, whining barks that are easy to identify. Dogs that suffer from separation anxiety and those with phobias are prone to exhibit this kind of behaviour. On top of barking incessantly, dogs with separation anxiety may also become destructive and start chewing everything in sight.

Boredom

Dogs are pack animals, and if left alone for too long, they can become bored or sad. This can trigger excessive barking as your dog tries to break the boredom or sadness cycle.

Seeking attention

If your dog wants you to do something, he or she will let you know about it by barking. This is the kind of bark you probably hear when your dog wants food or needs to head outside to do his business.

What can I do about excessive barking?

There’s nothing you can do to prevent your dog from barking, but some remedies might be able to help control your pup’s constant barking. Calming remedies can help soothe anxiety, which in most cases, is the trigger for excessive barking. Dogs that are less stressed tend to bark less.

Shouting at your dog when he’s having a barking tantrum won’t cut it. When you shout, you stimulate your dog to bark even more because he thinks you’re joining in. the best thing you can do is to address them calmly and firmly

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What can cause separation anxiety in your dog?

Some dogs will develop separation anxiety while others won’t, and nobody knows why this is the case. Rescue and shelter dogs that were adopted as puppies also tend to suffer the worst. But that makes total sense. Here are some other scenarios that can trigger separation anxiety in your dog:

A change in routine

If you suddenly go from being with your dog every day to leaving them alone for 6 hours a day, it can most definitely cause your dog to feel worried and lonely.

Moving

Moving to a new home, especially when your pup is still young, can trigger separation anxiety in your dog.

Loss of a family member

Dogs bond strongly with their family members, and when they lose one, it can trigger a wide range of emotional responses. Dogs are pack animals by nature, and when the dynamics of their pack changes, it causes distress.

How do I know if it is separation anxiety?

Potty incidents, barking, escape attempts and wrecked homes are tales we’ve all heard of. The truth is that separation anxiety can be mild or severe, and if it’s the latter, things can get pretty messy pretty fast.

Common symptoms and signs of separation anxiety in your dog might include:

• Pooing and urinating inside the house
• Excessive barking and howling
• Chewing, digging, and other destructive behaviour
• Escape attempts
• Pacing
• Eating their own poop

How can I help my dog?

Products like CBD seem to work wonders to help ease separation anxiety in pets. CBD might also be able to reduce learned fear or automatically fearful reactions to certain events. Along with a treatment like CBD, you can also practice a mock leaving routine, so your dog gets used to the idea and won’t freak out when you have to go out for an extended period.

If your dog doesn’t learn to calm him or herself over time, and you’ve already tried something like CBD for dogs, it might be wise to consult with a behavioural specialist.

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Here are some things you might want to keep in mind before adding a large, lovable furball to your life.

Consider THIS before getting a giant breed

They take up a lot of space

Okay, so this one sounds obvious but take a second to really think about it. Do you already have a cat or a medium-sized dog? Ever considered how much space they take up in your bed or couch? Are you ready to share what’s left of the space under your feet as you cook with an even larger dog?

And then there’s the food thing

Giant breed dogs need special attention paid to their diets. They have to eat specific foods until they are two years old. Their diet needs to be regulated in terms of energy, protein and calcium to ensure steady growth during their two years in puppyhood. Also, giant breed dogs eat twice as much as a regular dog, so there’s also a major cost implication here, especially if you’re sticking to vet food, which is highly recommended.

Plus vet costs

Some giant breeds are predisposed to health conditions, which can quickly translate to massive vet bills. Before welcoming that Mastiff into your life, it’s a good idea to have some kind of pet insurance in place. Talk to them about what will and won’t be covered with your giant breed so that you’re prepared for the costs.

Giants don’t live the longest lives

A sad but very true thing to keep in mind is that certain giant breed dogs may only live for six or seven years. You need to be okay with this fact if you plan on adding one to your family. Ten years is considered a long life for giant breeds.

There will be accidents

Just one sweep of a giant breed’s tail can send everything on your tables flying to the ground. And that dinner you prepared lovingly? Your giant breed will gobble it straight off the table. Before welcoming a large dog into your home, you need to dog-proof your home.

The costs for everything will generally be higher

Giant breeds need bigger beds, bigger collars, bigger bowls, more rugged toys,  the list goes on and on. On top of the higher cost of feeding your dog and healthcare costs, life, in general, will cost more if you’ve got a giant furry friend living in your home.

A poop scoop will become your new BFF

It’s simple math: giant dog =giant poops!

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Dogs teach humans to:

Always love, protect and be loyal to your family

Dogs, just like wolves in the wild, are loyal to their families till the bitter end. Dogs will do anything to protect the members of their family and always show them unconditional love.

Stop worrying about what others think

Dogs really don’t care what others (man or animal kind) think of them. And this is something we can all learn to do because at the end of the day, worrying about what others think is nothing more than a waste of energy. Dogs teach humans that worrying about what “they” think only leads to one sure outcome – unhappiness.

Live for the now

Dogs live in the moment and are only concerned with what’s happening right now. And this is how we should be too, instead of worrying about what might or might not happen. You’re living your life right now, so it’s time to stop stressing about the future and start living in the moment.

Do something enjoyable every day

Dogs have a few simple things in life that make them happy. Food, play, walkies and sleep are what kind of sums it up, and they want to do those things every day. As humans, we should all look to spend some time each day doing something we really enjoy.

Stop being afraid of trying new things

If there’s one saying about dogs that’s just not true, it’s the one about teaching old dogs new tricks. Dogs love learning new things and will usually go at it without hesitation. In much the same way, us humans shouldn’t be afraid to try new things either.

Make time for relaxing

Dogs instinctively know when they need to rest and recuperate, so why is it that we don’t seem to understand that we need time for relaxing too? We tend to forget all about our need for rest, running on autopilot through most of the day. At least once a day, you need to stop and give yourself some much needed time for rest and relaxation.

Appreciate everything you’ve got

Dogs are at their happiest as long as they’re fed, walked, and loved by their humans. We all need to appreciate the good things in our lives and be grateful for what we’ve got rather than focus on what we don’t have.

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