Quinta’s Temperament Tests, 2004
(Lively’s mother; Spirit’s, Soleil’s & GloryToo’s maternal grandmother; Mercy’s & Lovely’s maternal great-grandmother)
mother of the X, AA, CC & EE litters
grandmother of the FF, GG, HH, ii & KK litters
great-grandmother of the JJ, LL, MM, NN & PP litters
great-great grandmother of the QQ litter
The Q Litter was tested on October 30th & 31st, when they were 46 & 47 days old. Results are listed after the description of each part of the Test. An extensive Search & Rescue test was done on the 30th, with some retesting on the 31st after the police/narcotics test, if the SAR tester (Janet) hadn’t been satisfied with the pup’s reactions the day before. For the SAR test, we took the pups to a rural schoolyard which had a very large grassy field. Heavy rain the day before made the field too soggy for the entire test, so most of the exercises were done in the playground area which is deep in wood chips. The chips proved to be way too highly tempting to the pups and Janet had to clear their mouths often to get them to go after the toys rather than the chips. Results are listed after the description of each part of the Test. You will note that some exercises are done in both tests and other exercises are unique to one test or the other. Janet was the primary tester, with Kelly, another SAR person, adding her ratings on some tests. A table with scores from every phase of the test is listed after the test explanation. Pups reactions are rated on a scale from 1 to 10, with 10 being excellent.
Temperament Test 1: the Search & Rescue test
Tug, Prey Drive, Chase, Retrieve Drive, Bite The first series of tests involve the pup’s desire to play, chase the toy, how well the pup bites and hold the toy when he or she gets it, and whether the pup will bring it back to the tester.
Tug
Janet: 10+, “Really grips.”
Kelly: 10
Prey
Janet: 10
Kelly: 10
Retrieve
Janet: 5
Kelly: 6
Bite:
Janet: 10
Kelly: 10
Chase:
Janet: 10
Kelly: 10
Strange Noise, Unstable Surface The pups are exposed to both a strange, potentially scary noise and an unstable surface. In this particular test we used a plastic tarp draped over a camp chair. Janet also invented some additional tests by asking the pups to negotiate a metal grating on the playground equipment, to climb a series of wood sections that ended with a widow and a 6’ drop to the ground. Janet tested the pups’ trust by handing them down to a helper and noting their reactions.
Unstable Surface
Janet: 10
Kelly: 10
Noise
Janet: 10
Kelly: 10
Hunt for Food and Hunt for Toys The pups are tested to determine their desire to find the toy when it’s hidden, and to find food. The toy was hidden under the tarp and the pup encouraged to look for it. A piece of bacon on a string was drug and bounced past the pups to test their desire to use their noses when they couldn’t see the bacon. Janet took off fast with the bacon drag and ran way out into the field behind the school. Quinta was one of only three pups that noticed this first run; Janet had to repeat it twice more to give all pups a chance to be tested. It is fascinating to see those little noses go to the ground and guide the galloping pups after Janet when she outruns them.
Hunt for Food
Janet: 10
Hunt for Toy
Janet: no
Submission, Forgiveness, Socialability The pups are graded on their desire to interact with and play with the tester. For the submission test, each pup was placed on its back and held down firmly for about 10 seconds. Desirable reaction includes struggle followed by acceptance. Undesirable reactions include total passivity or frantic struggle with refusal to “give” to the human, or trying to bite. The pup is judged afterwards on its willingness to forgive the tester for the submission test. The pup is also held in the air at arm’s length to judge its confidence in being unsupported.
Submission
Janet: 8
Kelly: 8
Forgiveness
Janet: 10
Kelly: 10
Socialability
Janet: 10
Kelly: 10
Trust
Janet: 10
Kelly: 10
Confidence Janet also invented some additional tests by asking the pups to negotiate a metal grating on the playground equipment, to climb a series of wood sections that ended with a widow and a 6’ drop to the ground. Janet then further tested the pups’ trust and confidence by handing them down to a helper and noting their reactions.
Temperament Test 2: The police dog/narcotics dog test
Saturday had been a beautiful day, but Sunday brought a storm with wind and rain mixed with snow. We had to do the test in a large unheated garage. The police test is quite different from the Search & Rescue Test. The main difference I noticed in the SAR test was that the testers played with the pups at the same time, and evaluated them for all of the above as they played with them. They were also much more physically active and used excited voices and clapping to encourage the pups, while the tester in the police test is very calm and low key, asking the pups to draw the excitement forth from within themselves. Another difference was that other people stood around just feet from and in full view of each pup as it was tested. In the police test only the tester is within sight or scent of the pup during the testing and everyone was required to be very quiet.
Suzan was the main tester, with Janet hiding to open the umbrella on the surprise test. Janet also gave ratings on some of the test.
Test/ Rating/Comments
Acceptance/Attachment
Suzan: Excellent
Janet: 8
Pain Sensitivity
Suzan: Excellent
Retrieve
Suzan: High Average
Janet: 5
Unstable Surfaces
Suzan: Excellent
Janet: 10
Perseverance
Suzan: Excellent
Janet: Tug 10; prey 10
Courage and Aggression
Suzan: Above Average
Janet: 10
Fear
Suzan: Excellent
Janet: 10
Surprise
Suzan: Excellent
Janet: 10
Submission
Suzan: Above Average
Forgiveness
Suzan: Above Average
Janet: Medium
Social
Suzan: Above Average
Janet: 8
Tester Comments: Very nice, independent pup. For the most part, full bites & lots of interest. Puts full body into what she is doing. Very curious and friendly.
see Temperament Test Results for Quinta’s mother, Jubilee
see temperament test results for Quinta’s daughter, Lively
see temperament test results for Quinta’s granddaughters GloryToo, Soleil and Spirit
see temperament test results for Quinta’s great-granddaughters, Mercy and Lovely