Every dog should be put through a temperament test. This valuable battery of tests varies from agency to agency, but for the most part there are several items of soundness and general tolerance that are looked for. Most breeders will have temperament tested the parents of any puppies, but this does not necessarily mean that those puppies will come out with the same characteristics. Here I will outline just a few testing items that you should be looking at for the temperament of an adopted dog, as with the overpopulation of bully breeds I don’t advocate purchasing from a breeder.
***CAUTION – NEVER ATTEMPT TO TEMPERAMENT TEST A DOG WITHOUT THE ASSISTANCE OF A PROFESSIONAL! THESE ARE GUIDELINES ONLY!***
Immediate failure of test occurs when a dog shows:
*Unprovoked aggression
*Persistent panic (does not subside)
*Avoidance (to human contact or stimuli)
>Always test only one dog at a time. Take the dog to a smaller, enclosed room with little to no distractions, including excess people.
>Take the dog outside and see how he or she reacts to natural stimuli (cats, other dogs, squirrels, birds). Barking, lunging, or growling – stop test.
>Have someone run by the leashed dog several times. Trail a squeaky toy, and gage the dog’s reaction. Barking, lunging, or growling – stop test.
>Sit in a chair, with the dog leashed. Make no extraneous noises or movements. What you are looking for here is to see if the dog wants to be with you – looking at you, nuzzling you, sitting by you. Turning away from you, mounting you, mouthing unprovoked – stop test.
>Give the dog a bowl of wet food (works best). Halfway through eating it, remove with a long pole, stick, or broom handle slowly. Snapping, curling lip, growling – stop test.
This is a much abbreviated list of things to test for. There is also physical stimuli, noise, and other distraction that is generally tested for. There are several ways to get your dog recognized for her or his good behavior and temperament. Please visit the following two sites for more information.
The American Temperament Test Society at:
www.atts.org [1]
or
The American Kennel Club – Canine Good Citizen (CGC) at:
www.akc.org/events/cgc [2]