The Sensory Capacities and Intelligence of Dogs, with a Report on the Ability of the Noted Dog "Fellow" to Respond to Verbal Stimuli

T HE material selected for discussion in this paper naturally falls into two major divisions as indicated in the title. The attempt is made in the first general section to present, very briefly indeed, a fairly systematic account of the more important aspects of the capacities and behavior of the dog, insofar as these have been revealed by careful observation and experimental analysis. Vastly more information is at hand on the sensory capacities of the dog than on what we usually think of as general intelligence. The sections covering such capacities, especially visual, olfactory and auditory, are accordingly large while that on intelligence is correspondingly small. The distinction here made is, of course, one of convenience only, inasmuch as general intelligence must be, in the very nature of the case, a function of sensory and other capacities. A short section treating of the special fitness of the dog to serve as a subject for extensive and intensive behavior studies in the modern animal laboratory will follow that on intelligence. The second major division of the paper will consist of a fairly detailed account of certain tests, recently conducted by the writers, on the German Shepherd Dog "Fellow" -widely known on stage and screen-to determine to what extent, if any, his reputed ability to understand human language is justly warranted. Before entering upon the main discussion it may be not entirely out of place to remind you that the attitude of the modem comparative psychologist is one of healthy skepticism toward supposed cases of animal genius and human-like levels of animal intelligence. It is not that the student of animal behavior has a grudge against the infra-human kind, or any scientific or philosophical objection to a high evaluation of their abilities. For, in point of fact, no one more than the comparative psychologist welcomes evidence tending to confirm his belief in the essential continuity of all living forms on the