In my experience, dobbies seem to come in two flavors: inbred stupid (and mean) or very bright. Sounds like you got the second - in spades!
He’s a European line-bred.
They simply don’t put up with “stupid and mean”.
They will not even allow owners to breed a litter *unless* at least one of the parents has a working title already.
I’ve owned many more American breds than Euros, though.
None of them were stupid and mean...but then again, they weren’t owned by somebody who had no clue how to cultivate their Dobe’s unique style of intellect....LOL
He’s scary-smart.
When he was 4 months old, in _10 minutes_, he learned to sit, down, give paw, give other paw.
He learns things on his own, as well.
A few days ago he encountered his first “open” set of stairs and at first , he didn’t know how to navigate them without falling through.
Five minutes [and 30 trips up/down] later, he’d mastered them and kept standing at the top, looking down at us, “grinning”.
He was so pleased with himself.
What a nut.