My children and wife keep insisting that our wonderful dog Luca is really really smart and can do all these amazing acts of intelligence. However, I have my serious doubts. She's an okay dog, but she's no super dog that's for sure.

When she is naughty, like when she keeps coming up to sniff my food, lick my plate or pounce at me bashing her sharp paws against my back and side, I raise my voice and say out loud: NO!

I even do the so-called ignore trick where by turning your back to her you are instilling more emotional pain by 'shaming her' that they say that the effect works wonders. I see no difference, as Luca keeps coming back again and again to bug me, until I have to lock her up as punishment. This does not seem too smart to me.

Also when she keeps guard in front of the living room window and sees a bug or spider or other insect on the other side of the glass, she'll keep jumping at it and banging her poor snout against the hard glass surface, again and again without learning. This does not seem too smart to me either.

The other day just for fun my wife bought this big dog puzzle made of sliding wooden panels behind which you can hide tasty treats. The idea is that by sliding these panels back and forth with the paw, the dog learns the gist of the puzzle so that it can instantly snatch up the hidden tasty treats without thinking.

It's been two weeks now, and I am sorry to admit that our dog still hasn't figured it out. Poor Luca gets all frustrated and panics by biting, jumping and sniffing wildly with zero affect.

I think I have proven my point. Mice are a hundred times smarter.