Dear Wordwind: I should think it very difficult to measure the intelligence of dogs accurately enough to make comparison. One thing that makes a tremendous difference is the motivation of the dogs. The Border Collies are highly motivated to please the owner. But I remember an Irish Setter we owned before the AKC turned them into beautiful idiots. That dog learned three tricks in one night, but when I tried to get him to learn a fourth, he just kept repeating the third, and I swear he was laughing at me, because he knew three tricks were enough to get him all the treats he wanted.