“There are no dumb dogs… only dumb owners,” they’ll tell you.
That was the response we got when we first started using the headline in this ad.
The idea that there are no dumb dogs is bunk. Nonsense. Total fantasy. There are dumb dogs just like there are dumb humans.
“There are dumb dogs just like there are dumb humans”
Of course, nobody gets upset when Dog Fancy Magazine publishes it’s annual list of the “Top 10 Smartest Breeds”. But mention that there might be some real dumber-than-a-box-of-hammers dogs and everybody calls you a heretic.
How can there be smart dogs and not dumb dogs, too?
The problem is that you need experience training at least a couple hundred dogs before you have the insight to know if a dog is actually dumb or just stubborn.
Sometimes owners mistake disobedience for dumb. (They’re not the same!)
You Can’t Fix Stupid…
But You Can Train It
There’s an old redneck saying, “You can’t fix stupid.” But you can train it.
Even the dumbest dog can be trained. He just won’t learn exercises as fast as a smart dog will.
But really… what are we talking about? Days instead of hours? Months instead of weeks? No, not even that much.
A smart dog might pick up a new exercise after the second or third attempt. An average dog, after seven or eight repetitions. And a dumb dog? Nine to twelve times.
Of course, you’ll need to be an expert to know if your dog is “just a little slow” or if it’s another issue. Perhaps your dog had a prior association with the exercise you’re trying to teach? Or maybe his breed attributes are not conducive to the exercise. (Ever try to teach a bulldog to swim?)
But if you’ve trained a few hundred dogs and the dog you’re working with takes consistently longer than most dogs to “figure it out,” well… you might have a dumb dog.
So what if your dog isn’t the sharpest tool in the shed? It doesn’t make a difference. We love them all the same, and just because your dog might be a little slower than the rest is no excuse to ignore training. Because even the dumbest dog can be trained to high levels of companion dog obedience.
So, whether your dog is a canine Einstein or a canine “Snookie” — you can get your dog to listen to you, anywhere you go once you learn the right techniques.