I like intelligent dogs, especially working dogs. Not the stupid ones.
I used to dislike dogs, till I met a working sheepdog when I was a teenager. That dog was more intelligent than half the people I'd met up to that point. A few hours playing with her changed my views with dogs forever...
An aquaintance has a lapdog, some sort of poodle / chiwahuana crossbreed. It's so dumb I got fed up with it. We went to the park, and it would walk a couple of meters, start feeling lost and mewl around for its owner, who was standing a couple of feet behind it. I started wanting to punt it over the hedge. Deffo true what they say about dogs being as intelligent as their owner. (Rimshot
I'm thinking of getting a Hearing Dog for the Deaf, as my family and 9 month old kid are all Deaf, and she's getting to the point where she's gonna be wandering around having adventures and getting lost.
I used to be quite against Hearing Dogs for the Deaf (I'm Deaf myself) as I think it's insulting to the dog to use it as an alarm clock or doorbell alerter (buy a vibrating alarm clock and a flashing doorbell!).
Also the charity that trains them fundraises far more easily than many organisations that do more important work with the Deaf community (Do i seem cynical? Me?)
Now that I have a Deaf daughter, a dog could be useful in helping us to find her when she falls over / gets lost / aid family communications.
Why specifically a Hearing Dog? Tho I'm not keen on that name, in the UK, they have greater legal rights than most dogs, it's easier to travel with them, and they can enter restaurants and so on.
Recently their training has been changed so I can specify what training they get - I don't want an intelligent dog's brain wasted on becoming a canine alarm clock - so I'm a little more easy with the idea of getting a Hearing Dog now.
.. RedTomato ..