Some say the dog’s intelligence is equivalent to a 4 year old child … to that theory I say absolute polony! I believe our best friend’s IQ is equivalent to a very smart, adult human. And I qualify this by adding that animals may have a different type of intelligence to ours but, nevertheless, just as superior.

If you have ever truly watched wolves, wild dogs or any other species going about their daily duties, you will be very humbled indeed. Nowadays with the advent of National Geographic and legitimate field studies, we are discovering a super animal intelligence out there which no one thought possible in the old days … how short sighted some were.

Animals and humans face the same problems

Let’s compare our worlds which are really pretty similar because we both have to make a living. We humans go out to work and bring home the lolly for food and necessities to survive in our modern world. We protect, raise and educate our kids in preparation for the day they will leave the ‘nest’ and replay the ancient cycle of survival themselves.

So what’s different between us and our furry, feathered or finned connections? Well, quite frankly not much, except I think they are a whole lot more intelligent than us ‘naked apes’. Animals have to survive in times of great adversity - in the pouring rain, searing heat or frozen land and must find their own food and shelter. They do not have high walls or security companies to protect them - all they have are their wits and God given weapons which they must use in combat when defending themselves or their family’s lives. They don’t have cars, taxis or supermarkets ‘just up their street’. They must track down, hunt, kill and protect their dinner from thieves and assassins using only their natural instincts and intelligence. They don’t have maternity wards, midwives or hospitals - they bear down and deliver at nature’s will… often in the presence of great danger. They educate their own children and must work regardless of a sore throat, a headache or a pain in the gut.

We have creches and so do they - often Aunts and Uncles help out at bush nurseries while single moms go off to get supplies. Fast food doesn’t mean an easy meal but rather breakfast has legs! The intelligence of a 4 year old child? I think not!

Don’t underestimate your dog

So next time a dog saves a child from drowning or alerts its owner to a house fire, don’t be surprised - animals are certainly not dumb. And never underestimate your animal’s intelligence either, because you will be wrong!