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The way you talk about mosha makes her seem very smart. However, my friends have dog breeds that are generally considered to be smarter than mosha’s breed. But, they don’t seem smart because they don’t listen to their owners. This makes me think that good dogs are more a reflection of their owners and how they train them than their average intelligence. Just like parenting, many people are not suitable to be dog owners.

Ryan 3w ago

Definitely true.

Dogs are also like people, think of the midwit meme. A few are brilliant, most average, and a few dumb ones.

Growing up my father trained cattle dogs. Out of a group of pups they wouldn't all be good for working dogs, only a small percentage, the rest got sold out given away to be pets or yard dogs. Same with any breed. A few brilliant ones, and then the rest.

Mosha is certainly very smart for a pug. I knew that when I got her though, from the way she responded and paid attention to me when I first met her.

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Discussion

Sweary and bookish. 3w ago

It's my first Christmas in over 10 without my dog. A rescue, like yours, but she very challenging. Like myself, usually calm but prone to outbursts🥳😂.

Ryan 3w ago

Ah that must be tough 🫂 With Mosha's age I think about that often. The last 3 Christmas' I have thought in the back of my head they would be Mosha's last, but she's still here with me thankfully. I guess we'll see what 2026 brings.

Sweary and bookish. 3w ago

I remember chatting to you about this earlier in the year when mine was poorly. She passed away in May and I told you to cherish the time you have left, which you clearly do. I sincerely hope we're here in 12 months time and she's still smelling round your kitchen🙏🏻.

MAHDOOD 3w ago

You mentioned before that dogs respond better to a strong leader. That made sense to me given their nature as pack animals. I'm wondering if an average dog would seem more intelligent simply because they had a good owner.

Ryan 3w ago

Training has a lot to do with it.

Dogs like to learn and please, it's their nature. Like Mosha in the kitchen for instance. The reason she stays out of the way is because when she was young I would kick her (lightly, not enough to hurt, but enough she knew she was in the way). She quickly realized to stay out of the way. Ever since she stands back and waits for her treats.

This is what I usually see while cooking 😂

MAHDOOD 3w ago

I do the same with cats. Cats are retarded and will dangerously walk right in front of you. People sometimes will see this light push I did with my foot and call me mean. But I would rather not seriously hurt the fucker by stepping on it or tripping while going down the stairs.

Ryan 3w ago

💯 not mean. It's how animals communicate.

I told my aunt to do the same with her dog, a minpin that was always underfoot.

"No that's mean!" She said.

Just like you said, she ended up stepping on it's leg and breaking it. The poor little dog never walked right again, and it cost thousands of dollars in vet bills. 🤦‍♂️

MAHDOOD 3w ago

SMH. The intention is to teach them something important. If they could communicate in other ways, we'd do it. It's not like we enjoy this. Sad.