Your dog knows when you are lying: Scientists show pooches can sniff out the truth when their owners tell them a fib
- Scientists from Kyoto University tested the intelligence of 34 dogs in a test
- They were pointed towards tubs which first contained food and then did not
- The team found when they tried again most dogs refused to obey the command
Man’s best friends might be scared of vacuum cleaners but they are smarter than given credit for, according to a study.
Scientists researching their intelligence in Japan found dogs can remember if a person is trustworthy.
If they decide the person giving them an order is not, the clever canine will often decide not to follow their orders.
The findings, published in the Animal Cognition journal, found the animals are quick to figure people out.
The team from Kyoto University found the dogs in the study remembered if someone was being truthful towards them (stock image of Maddie, left and Barney)
Akiko Takaoka, who led the study, said this means that dogs can use their experience to judge whether they can be trust somebody.
The BBC reported: ‘Dogs have more sophisticated social intelligence than we thought.
‘This social intelligence evolved selectively in their long life history with humans.’
The team of scientists at Kyoto University followed the common knowledge that if a person points at something, a dog will usually run and sniff out what they are being directed towards.
Testing the theory on 34 dogs, a researcher pointed each of them towards a container holding food.
The team found the dogs have more intelligence than sometimes given credit for (stock image)
But during the second test the container was empty.
The third time the scientist pointed towards a tub most of the dogs ignored the instruction.
John Bradshaw, a veterinary scientist who specialises in human-animal interactions at the University of Bristol, said that dogs like their lives to be predictable.
He said: ‘Dogs whose owners are inconsistent to them often have behavioural disorders.’