I've had Schnauzer owners assert that they are the smartest dogs in the cosmos.
My boyhood dog was a red coon hound and I can't attest that he was super smart, but he was a wily alpha male who I discovered was the leader of a gang of dogs in the neighborhood - I got to the bus stop early one morning and suddenly, a pack of 6-7 dogs popped out of the woods running my way and they didn't look friendly. I thought I was in for a really bad time when I noticed that the lead dog looked familiar in the gloom - I called his name and he just about wore off his male parts sliding to a stop on the road; and the rest stopped and looked confused as they watched him change from head dog to "pansy".
He was a loyal dog and would put up with all sorts of indignities with the family and would not hesitate to defend us - can't ask for much more in a dog.
That is funny.