How can I make my dog more intelligent?

January 07, 2022 by Xavier Y. Training

How can you make your dog more intelligent? — **Brain training for dogs - turn your dog into a genius!**

What is brain training for dogs?

The science behind the dog training system of correcting bad behavior based on "neuroplasticity" - well established and heavily researched at Harvard and other leading universities idea. Our brains (same as your dog's brain) are like pottery clay - always capable of easy to modify and molding into the desired form to learn new habits and behaviors. With the right mental stimulation and training your dog's brain will become more open and receptive to learning new information. Your dog will listen to you and better understand what you are telling him to do. When this happens - your dog's bad behaviors simply fade away as more desirable ones appear in their place.

Every dog without exception - has a hidden intelligence inside. Check this video about training protocol for jumping in dogs:

Learn more about Brain Training program for Dogs!

How can you make your dog more intelligent?

You can quickly build intelligence at the very early stage of life. However, it becomes harder to build intelligence as we grow older. The brain is at the early stage of development in childhood, so whatever the brain is trained to do or believe becomes a habit. This is why a person who has been traveling since youth does not quickly develops phobia or resentment for traveling at his older stage of life. There will be a stark difference between someone who has been swimming consistently from childhood and someone who started swimming in adulthood.

This is how the human brain operates. A dog's brain works the same way. The brain has the tendency to be modified or revamped. However, it is easier to alter a puppy's brain than an older dog's brain. This does not necessarily mean that you cannot modify an older dog's brain. No. Just like the human brain works, you can train a dog to learn new habits, characters/behaviors, information, and exposures when subjected to the proper mental stimulation. If your dog is not as intelligent as you've always wanted, you can adopt corrective measures towards making her better.

How to make your dog smarter?

Have you ever envied intelligent dogs and wished that your "friend with furs" was more competent? Are you a new dog owner who is clueless about whatnots could make your dog smarter? Somehow, we have come to underrate the intelligence capacity of dogs so much that we rarely unlock their full potentials. You must have heard or come to know that training your dog early (as early as when your dog is just a 5-week old puppy) and being consistent with the processes can make your dog super-smart and intelligent. Well, that is very right. The earlier, the easier and better.

If you desire a smart dog, you should learn not to procrastinate. You can start training your dog as early as when the dog is just a month and a few weeks old. You can start by teaching her the basic commands (mostly commands to prepare them for obedience). Of course, dogs are different naturally in their basic level of intelligence and are genetically wired differently. Yet, consistently training your dog early and straining her thoughts will make your dog more intelligent.

Can my dog's intelligence be measured by the amount of training the dog receives?

It is not a wonder that many people believe that a dog's intelligence should be measured by how much training it receives. Intelligence is known to be the mind's capacity to understand principles, facts, or meanings. Intelligence means acquiring knowledge and applying it to practice. The mind can "learn" and "comprehend."
From the clear understanding of what intelligence means, the training a dog receives has a lot of influence on its Intelligence capacity. However, intelligence can't always be measured by the dog's training alone. A Dog is really "smart" and "super-intelligent" if it can think "outside the box." A Dog should be able to think beyond what it had been taught, the training it had gotten, and its knowledge. Therefore, an intelligent dog is expected to think outside the box.

To train your dog, you must have the intention of making her smarter in the following aspects:

Socially.

It is essential to socialize your dog if you want your canine friend to become smart. Getting your dog to Interact with the diverseness of the outer world and its variants is a very smart way of building your dog's intelligence, and it can never be over-emphasized.

Put your furry friend on a leash, give her a broad smile, and take her on an adventure. Because, In a bid to train your dog socially, there is a wide variety of strange things/people you may need to have her exposed to.

Make sure you do this while your dog is between 4-12 weeks of age to make things work out efficiently and get your dog adapted to these things as early as possible. If your dog is much older, you might need to be very careful with these processes. For example, if you need to modify the dog's brain, you'd need to put her on a solid leash.

You need to expose your dog to:

Strange and Unfamiliar people.
Getting to see new and strange faces is a way of training your dog to know that you're not just the only One walking with two legs. If your dog is too acquainted with you alone that it jerks when it sights someone else that is not you, there's an urgent need for you to expose her to people. Let her meet almost all the varieties of people you have in the neighborhood, from the old to the young, the separate genders, different complexions, different heights, et al. Allow them to pet her, give her treats, and ensure that you also protect her from dangers (or being a danger).
Unfamiliar environments.
Your canine friend might need to understand that your habitation isn't the only one around. Show her different places, Take different routes, and get her acquainted with the things in the environment.
Vehicles
Other than teaching your dog to be wary of the possible dangers of being hit by one, exposing your dog to vehicles and their benefits to society is very much important, too.
Common things that you can find in the neighborhood.
Road signs, benches, trash bins, skateboards et al. are common things in the neighborhood that your dog should be aware of.
Physical handling and caressing.
Allow people to pet your dog and caress her. It is a way of letting her know that you are not the only One who loves her and the only one she needs to be faithful to. It is a way of training her to know that she needs to care for other people. Ensure that you protect your dog from dangerous people.
Other caregivers
Expose your dog to other caregivers. For example, you can get a dog walker for her, or better still, a drop-in pet sitter.
Waterbodies.
Teach your dog how to navigate in various water bodies. For instance, you need to let her know how to get out of Pools from the stairs, Rivers, and Beaches safely.
Other canine friends.
Making your dog socialize with other dogs will boost the dog's confidence and make it less anxious. You can make your dog meet new canine friends by visiting the doggie daycare or dog park

Mentally.

One of the ways to train your dog to become more intelligent than other dogs is by adding mental exercises to their routines.

Here are some daily and regular mental activities that would make your dog smarter:

Stimulate their natural feeding instinct.
Naturally, dogs scavenge for their meals. So allow your dog to do this on some occasions too. It is a way of making her mentally intelligent. It is fun, and it gratifies your beloved dog when she is allowed to fish out her meals from food dispensing toys.
Teach her new tricks from time to time.
Aside from the mental benefits of making your dog learn impulse control, boosting her confidence, and stabilizing her focus, new tricks are amazingly good at solidifying the bond between you and your furry friend. Teach your puppy the basic commands (Come, Stay, Sit, Stand, Down, Leave it, Bring it, and so on), and teach your older dogs more complex ones (Except if they don't even know the basics. You'd have to teach them the basics first).
Get your canine friend a puzzle toy.
Puzzle toys are good at keeping your dog focused, busy, and entertained. Puzzle toys allow your dog to solve problems without your interference. It builds her focus, confidence, and mental strength.
Give her a chance to explore the surrounding.
Allow your dog to check out new exciting things every day, sniff around for new smells, and move around and check out strange things. That way, you will favor your dog's mental intelligence.
Put her in the mental workout of going through an obstacle course.
Put together obstacles and allow your dog to jump over them or, better still, find her way out of the hindrances. It is a mental workout, and it helps build a Dog's mental strength.

How to train a smart dog?

Yes! Your dog is smart and intelligent. But, there is still a need to hone the dog's intelligence. Your dog can never be "too smart." Knowledge, they say, is inexhaustible. So, here are some things to do to ensure that your dog keeps being intelligent:

Let your dog socialize with new people and new environments.
Habitually take your intelligent dog out to meet new people and get acquainted with new environments. This way, your dog becomes even more intelligent.
Continually expose your dog to tests and problems.
A typical way of doing this is by putting her meals in a bowl or container that would need her intelligence to eat. Then, she will find a way to fish out her meal due to her intelligence.
Adopt the use of smart dog toys and dog puzzles.
Smart dog toys and dog puzzles are designed to entertain smart Dogs and stimulate their brain. These would get them occupied for hours and refrain them from causing trouble.
Teach your dog new tricks and commands
Does your dog know some tricks?. Teach her new ones!. Dogs are capable of learning new tricks at regular intervals. Teach her new commands as she grows older. Commands like (Say your prayers, Opening the door, Watch me, Dancing, Salute, Wipe your paws, Collect garbage, Peek A Boo, Handstand, Fetch a drink from the refrigerator, Skateboarding, Use the toilet, Sing) are very complex commands for smart dogs. You can train your dog to respond to those intelligent commands too.
Praise your dog and make her happy every time
Like humans, dogs love it when they are praised and appreciated. They love being happy, and intelligent dogs get emotional when you are sad, or you make them unhappy. So ensure to give her positive responses to encourage her after displaying intelligent behavior. That way, you're honing her intelligence and motivating her to keep it up.

Brain training for dogs.

Like I have said earlier, "The intelligence capacity of dogs has been underrated so much that we do not always unlock their full potentials." This is very true. Dogs have intricate minds, they can feel and experience emotions, and they can read and understand our body language. Yet, there are still more potentials of dogs' brains that we are still clueless about.

Do you know?

The degree of a dog's intelligence is similar to that of a 2-year old child.
Dogs' brains are structurally identical to human beings.
Up to 40% of the dog's brain is used for examining various smells.
Dogs can count and understand about 150 words or more when taught.
Dogs have rewritten history due to their loyalty.

Your dogs need brain training to enhance healthy cognitive function and maintain their physical fitness. Although you will need brain training for puppies, older dogs also need it to maintain their cognitive function.

Here are some of the games that are good at maintaining cognitive functions in dogs:

Picking of objects.
This helps a lot in training your dog to tidy up the house. Allow your dog to pick up objects (especially her toys) and teach her to put them in the right places. Allow your dog to dispose of wastes in the trash can too. Make it a daily routine for her.
Hidden treasure hunt.
Get a treasure (for instance, the dog's favorite treat or toy), show it to her face, and hide it in a place where your dog can easily find it. Let your dog see the exact location where you hid the "Treasure," then beckon on her to find the hidden treasure for the more manageable levels. Dogs are great sniffers. If the hidden gem is a treat, they will easily fish it out. This is because they rely on their nose more than any other sense organ, and they will find out the hidden treat by tracing the location of the smell. Sniffing is one of the natural skills of Dogs, and this game helps in honing it effectively.
Hide and seek.
Hide and seek game trains your dog's brain by hiding toys and treats in secret places and making your dog locate where you hid the treats with her distinct sense of smell. You can also hide and call on your dog and get her to seek you out. Due to dogs’ great sense of smell, your distinctive scent will help your dog locate you out of hiding. Finally, remember to give her treats as rewards. As much as this sounds like a game for children, canines love "hide and seek" a lot too.

Check this video from Brain Training for Digs about training protocol for picking objects:

What makes the brain training for dogs program unique is that most dog training programs fail you and your dog because they never address the root cause of your dog’s problem behavior. They just give you some cookie-cutter technique to stop biting, chewing or barking - which is short term in its effectiveness at best - again, because it does not address the root cause of the problem.