How many of you have debated with friends that your dog is smarter than their cat? Or vice versa? Its a question that has been debated since the beginning of time... okay, not that long, but you get the idea. Recently Pawnation.com posted an article about this very topic and detailed the results from a study conducted by Oxford University. For some (like me) the results are not very surprising. :)
People often think cats are smarter than dogs because they have more independant personalities. However according to the study, the more social an animal the bigger their brain. Dr. Suzanne Schultz (who led the study) told the Telegraph that the study "suggests the co-operation and co-ordination needed for group living can be challenging and over time some mammals have evolved larger brains to be able to cope with the demands of socialising." She also adds, "All dogs are quite good at solving problems, which gives credence to the traditional image of the cunning fox which is a member of the same family. Dogs descended from wolves which appear to have the biggest brains as they live in large family groups.”
Out of 500 species, monkeys brains grew the most over time followed by horses, dolphins, camels and dogs. Considering the belief that dogs are as smart as most toddlers, I am not surprised by this study at all! Most dogs have a vocabulary of 200 words!
What do you think? Are you surprised that dogs are smarter than cats?
