A seven-year-old Border Collie named Harvey has earned the title of “Britain’s brightest dog” after demonstrating the ability to recognise and retrieve more than 200 toys by name.
Harvey, owned by 52-year-old Irene Hewlett, can fetch any of his toys on command after learning to associate each item with its specific name. His remarkable ability has led to his acceptance into multiple research studies on so-called “genius dogs” in Budapest and Portsmouth.
Irene, a translator originally from Amsterdam, began training Harvey by teaching him the name of a single toy called Little Lamb. Through repetition, touch, and retrieval exercises from different locations, Harvey gradually learned to identify each object. He has since mastered the names of 221 toys, with his most recent addition being one called Larry the Leek.
“He picks up new toys in about five minutes now. This is what we do all day, every day,” Irene said. “Border Collies are working dogs and they need a job. This is his job, and he just wants to play all the time.”
Irene stressed that Harvey’s talent is not something performed for show. “This is what we do at home when nobody is watching. People don’t always realise how good he is until they see it for themselves,” she said.
Harvey was purchased as a puppy from a breeder in Liverpool after Irene’s rescue dog, Charlie, passed away. Inspired by the famous US Border Collie Chaser, who learned the names of more than 1,000 objects, Irene decided to explore how far Harvey’s learning could go.
The early stages were challenging, but Irene said everything changed once Harvey learned his fourth toy. “That’s when it clicked. Once he understood the game, we never looked back,” she said.
While Harvey occasionally struggles with toys that have similar-sounding names, he is usually able to work out the correct item by feel. The biggest challenge now, Irene says, is finding new and distinctive toys, with some even given Dutch names to avoid confusion.
The family has collected a wide range of novelty and festive toys, including a Brussels sprout, mince pie, reindeer, and a Christmas pudding. Irene hopes to continue expanding Harvey’s collection and has even joked about seeking sponsorship from toy brand Jellycat to help boost the numbers.
Despite his intelligence, Irene describes Harvey as calm and well-behaved. “He doesn’t destroy toys and doesn’t get overexcited. He simply picks up the right one and brings it back,” she said.
Looking ahead, Irene plans to keep teaching Harvey as many new toys as possible but has no intention of training another dog the same way. “I’m a one-dog person,” she said. “Harvey is very special.”
