What geniuses! Do you know which breed can remember more than 100 toy names?

A new study involving six genius dogs brought new insights into the functioning of canine memory, suggesting that some of them possess an extraordinary understanding of human language.

Hungarian scientists have spent more than two years looking around the world for dogs that could recognize the names of their toys. Although most dogs can learn commands to some degree, learning the names of certain subjects seems like a very different task that most dogs cannot master.

Dog geniuses Max (Hungary), Gaia (Brazil), Nalani (Netherlands), Squall (USA), Whiskey (Norway), and Rico (Spain) managed to master this task after showing that they know the names of more than 28 toys, and some knew even more than a hundred of them. They were then involved in a series of experiments broadcast live, the Genius Dog Challenge.

All of the dogs in the study were Border Collie breeds - sheepdogs originally bred to herd sheep. This role makes them very reactive to the behavior of their owners, however, only a small percentage of the breed is able to remember the names of their toys. But that talent isn’t unique to Border Collies alone.

Thanks to the Genius Dog Challenge project, we were able to find dogs of other breeds including the German Shepherd, Pekingese, Mini Australian Shepherd, and several mixed breeds, said the scientist, Dr. Shany Dror from the University of Rom the Eötvös Loránd. Another study found that Yorkshire Terriers also have this ability.

Dogs are good models for studying human behavior because they have evolved in the human environment. With these talented dogs, we were given a unique opportunity to study how other species understand human language and how word learning affects the way we think about the world, concludes the study’s co-author, Professor Ádám Miklósi of Eötvös Loránd University.

By: Olivia J. - Gossip Whispers