To highlight the intelligence of dogs and encourage more people to give rescued animals a new home, a charity in New Zealand is teaching three K9's how to operate a motor vehicle.

After months of intensive training, Monty, an 18-month-old schnauzer, Ginny, a one-year-old whippet cross and Porter, a ten-month-old-beardie cross can all start a car, accelerate and steer. Although it has not all been smooth driving according to trainer, Mark Vette, who told ITN News:

We had a couple of days ago the car was going too fast, the trainer nearly got run over, the car, the breaking, the dogs but no, we've got it all here now. There's no excuses. We've got to get in there and show that dogs can drive cars. It'll be 'dial-a-dog' the week after this.

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