Rank: 17 least intelligent dog breeds

SICSA volunteer Kathy McCauley feeds Codie a treat as a reward for climbing onto a stand in the exercise yard Monday. The Society for the Improvement of Stray Animals at 2600 Wilmington Pike relies on volunteers to exercise the entire population of dogs four times a day, rain or shine. Staff photo by Jim Witmer

Credit: Jim Witmer

Credit: Jim Witmer

SICSA volunteer Kathy McCauley feeds Codie a treat as a reward for climbing onto a stand in the exercise yard Monday. The Society for the Improvement of Stray Animals at 2600 Wilmington Pike relies on volunteers to exercise the entire population of dogs four times a day, rain or shine. Staff photo by Jim Witmer
Local News
By Melisa Lyons
May 24, 2017
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Dogs are known as man’s best friends, all have heard horror stories of dogs chewing on shoes, getting into the garbage or worse.

According to Graphiq, a dog’s ability to learn commands from humans has often been linked to its intelligence.

WATCH: The heart-warming reunion between a military dog and the handler who will adopt her

Using data from PetBreeds and “The Intelligence of Dogs,” a book by University of British Columbia professor Dr. Stanley Coren, Graphiq published a list of the 17 least intelligent dog breeds.

» RELATED: 5 things to know about SICSA, the pet adoption center that could soon expand

This list is based off of the bottom two tiers: “Fair working/obedience intelligence” and “lowest degree of working/ obedience intelligence.”

“Fair working/ obedience intelligence” was classified as a dog who understands new commands after 40 to 80 repetitions and obeys the first command 30 percent of the time or better.

“Lowest degree of working/ obedience intelligence” was classified as a dog who understands new commands after 80 to 100 repetitions or more and obeys the first command 25 percent of the time or worse.

By comparison, the top 10 most intelligent dogs need fewer than five repetitions to understand a command and obeys the first command 95 percent of the time or better.

» PHOTOS: 17 least intelligent dog breeds

The following shows the 17 least intelligent dog breeds and their country of origin:

RankBreedOriginTier
17Old English SheepdogUnited KingdomFair Working/ Obedience Intelligence
16Great PyreneesFrance and SpainFair Working/ Obedience Intelligence
15 Scottish Terrier and Saint Bernard (tie) United KingdomFair Working/ Obedience Intelligence
14Bull TerrierUnited KingdomFair Working/ Obedience Intelligence
13ChihuahuaMexicoFair Working/ Obedience Intelligence
12Lhasa ApspChinaFair Working/ Obedience Intelligence
11BullmastiffUnited KingdomFair Working/ Obedience Intelligence
10Shih TzuChinaLowest Degree of Working/ Obedience Intelligence
9Basset HoundFranceLowest Degree of Working/ Obedience Intelligence
8Mastiff and Beagle (tie)United KingdomLowest Degree of Working/ Obedience Intelligence
7PekingeseChinaLowest Degree of Working/ Obedience Intelligence
6BloodhoundUnited Kingdom and BelgiumLowest Degree of Working/ Obedience Intelligence
5BorzoiRussia and BelarusLowest Degree of Working/ Obedience Intelligence
4Chow ChowChinaLowest Degree of Working/ Obedience Intelligence
3BulldogUnited KingdomLowest Degree of Working/ Obedience Intelligence
2BasenjiThe Democratic Republic of the Congo Lowest Degree of Working/ Obedience Intelligence
1Afghan HoundAfghanistanLowest Degree of Working/ Obedience Intelligence

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About the Author

Melisa Lyons