Are they really THIS smart?!

[tomatosandwich]

Divot isn't allowed on my bed. It's the one place in the house Hubby insists on no dogs. Divot has never pushed the issue.

Last night, my kids asked to cuddle in my bed for a bit and watch a show on the laptop together since they aren't feeling well (terrible colds and coughs, ugh!). Of course Hubby and I snuggled them in for a bit.

Well, as my son hopped up in the bed, Divot timed his jump perfectly and landed with him, under my son's blanket. He quietly settled in with just a hint of his nose sticking out. The kids and I were giggling, but Hubby was clueless.

It really appeared as if Divot had it all planned out!

[Dempsy's Mom]

Fun. Family snuggles are great. Sounds like a perfect evening for everybody. That's a little secret that the kids will remember for a long time. Divot will remember too and try again - on that you can count. Good luck Divot!!

[bradl]

Heh, they are persistent little problem-solvers. I think they are indeed that smart.

[hheldorfer]

Never underestimate the intelligence of a Cairn. I'm convinced they WILL take over the world some day!

[josie&holly]

Of course they are that smart! Quick too!!

Holly has already worked out that if she goes into kitchen I follow thinking she wants to go out and she will nip back into living room and onto my warm spot on sofa before I get back!! She always looks very disgusted when I shift her to her blanket at her end!!

[kjwarnold]

They are too smart for our own good!

[Lynn in TN]

I love how smart they are! Kelly isn't much different than my kids at trying to get what she wants and knowing how to do it!

They are extremely smart dogs. You go Divot I'll bet you get to snuggle more often!

[pindrop]

How typical of a Cairn. They just like being with the family and of course in the warmest spot that takes you ages to get comfy. Every morning after Layla's outing, she books it back into the bedroom and snuggles under the blankets for an additional few hours of much needed rest.

[jo_]

YES.

The intelligence of these dogs amazes me on a daily basis. And I bet, now that he's done it one he'll be doing it again!

[pkcrossley]

it is likely that divot planned this and then executed it --which some dog experts will tell you can't be done, since dogs' attention span is too short. however, i could tell you many, many stories of the amazing intelligence shown by my dog redmon when he was four months old. i'll just tell this one, since it is the same kind of story --a cairn scheming to get something he knows he is not supposed to have.

each morning i would sit at a table and have an english muffin. i would sit in a chair by myself, and redmon would sit at my feet begging for a few crumbs. i got up once and when i turned around he was standing in the chair, looming over my muffin, with a greedy look. he got chased off and told off.

two days later, while i am eating my muffin, he runs to the front of the house and starts barking frantically. i jumped up and ran out, and there was nothing to see. immediately suspicious, i turned expecting to see no redmon but he was right there, looking at me intently. i shrugged and went back to my breakfast. moments later, more frantic barking. same routine, i look, get suspicious, turn and he is right at my side. third time. frantic barking, i look, nothing, turn... no dog.

you can fill in the rest of the story.

four months old. the planning, the subtlety, the ability to anticipate my feelings and expectations... completely stunning.

he did a lot of things like that. i believe these dogs are smarter than border collies, and are dissed in the "intelligent" dog tables because they simply do not consider orders from humans to be interesting.

[Lynn in TN]

I agree with you PK 100%. Kelly is so smart at time it is down right mind blowing at the things she does. Unlike the so called experts I believe these little dogs to be the most intelligent of all. They study and scheme and then execute! most of the time succeed. You have to be on your toes with them. I love them for their independent thinking. I just wish I was as smart as Kelly! HAHA

[hheldorfer]

PK's story is familiar to me, with a slight twist: Buffy and Ziggy each get a treat in the evening after dinner, usually something chewy like rawhide or a sweet potato/chicken chip. Buffy always wants Ziggy's treat but, of course, he'd sooner perish than give it up. So Buffy developed a better plan. She'd wait until Ziggy was settled and chewing on his treat and then she'd start ruffing, whining and prancing around just like she does when there's an intruder (i.e. cat, skunk, whatever) in the yard. Ziggy, being gullible, would jump up to check it out and Buffy would dash over and snag the treat.

I'm embarrassed to say it took us a while to catch on to this. When we eventually realized what was going on, we put an end to Buffy's ruse.

[tomatosandwich]

I am loving the shared stories of Cairns scheming! I do question how the experts decide on dog intelligence ratings. I think low obedience rate just might be evidence of high intelligence. Divot knows when there's something in it for listening and when there's really not.

I hope the scheming stories keep coming!

[pkcrossley]

i think terriers have a peculiar intelligence (possibly untestable by humans) due to their seventeenth-century and later breeding as clearers of farm vermin. the vermin are often invisible --below ground, in the walls of buildings, or indeed in cairns. the dogs --sometimes working in teams-- had to figure out how to flush the animals out of complex barrows or tunnels which may have had multiple escape routes. in practice you would have to understand the invisible system, cover the exits, get the prey to come out (usually by creating a threat at one entrance), and kill them before they kill you (with which badgers would be quite a trick). whoever survived and was best at the work got to produce the next litter.

not many terriers do this work any more, but of all terriers cairns and perhaps rat terriers most resemble the original populations, so they may have experienced the least dumbing-down by means of the stud book. certainly, the means by which four-month old redmon tricked me out of my breakfast muffin was exactly like the way that his ancestors four hundred years ago got badgers to come out of rock piles.

[claymike]

They are very smart, this morning when I let Rudy out of his crate he was proudly carrying his onesies. How he got them unsnapped, got his tail out of the hole I cut and then got his legs out of the holes but he did and did it without a sound.