TEST |
PURPOSE |
SCORE |
# |
SOCIAL ATTRACTION
Place puppy in test area about four feet from the tester. Tester kneels, leans backwards
and coaxes the pup to her/him by clapping hands gently. |
Degree of social attraction to people, confidence, or dependence.
Pack Drive
|
Came
readily, tail up, jumped, bit at hands |
1 |
Came
readily, tail up, pawed, licked at hands |
2 |
Came
readily, tail up |
3 |
Came
readily, tail down |
4 |
Came
hesitantly, tail down |
5 |
Didn't
come at all |
6 |
FOLLOWING The tester stands up and
slowly walks away encouraging the puppy to follow. Make sure the pup sees you walk away.
Coax puppy to follow by talking to it and attracting its attention. |
Willingness to follow a person. Pack Drive |
Followed
readily, tail up, got underfoot, bit at feet |
1 |
Followed
readily, tail up, got underfoot |
2 |
Followed
readily, tail up |
3 |
Followed
readily, tail down |
4 |
Followed
hesitantly, tail down |
5 |
Did
not follow or went away |
6 |
RESTRAINT The tester crouches down and
gently rolls the pup on its back and holds it down with light pressure with one hand for
30 seconds. |
Degree of dominance or submissive tendency, and ease of handling
in difficult situations. Fight or
Flight Drive
|
Struggled
fiercely, flailed, bit |
1 |
Struggled
fiercely, flailed |
2 |
Settled,
struggled, settled with some eye contact |
3 |
Struggled
then settled |
4 |
No
struggle, no eye contact |
5 |
No
struggle, straining to avoid eye contact |
6 |
SOCIAL DOMINANCE Puppy sits or stands on
crouching tester's left side and tester gently strokes it from the head to back. Continue
stroking until a recognizable behavior is established. |
Degree of acceptance of social dominance by a person. Pack Drive |
Jumped,
pawed, bit, growled |
1 |
Jumped,
pawed |
2 |
Cuddled
up to tester and tried to lick face |
3 |
Squirmed,
licked at hands |
4 |
Rolled
over, licked at hands |
5 |
Went
away and stayed away |
6 |
ELEVATION DOMINANCE The tester cradles the pup
under its chest, with both hands, fingers interlaced, palms up and gently lifts it two
feet off the ground, and holds it there for 30 seconds. |
Degree of accepting dominance while in position of no control. Fight or
Flight Drive |
Struggled
fiercely, tried to bite |
1 |
Struggled
fiercely |
2 |
Struggled,
settled, struggled, settled |
3 |
No
struggle, relaxed |
4 |
No
struggle, body stiff |
5 |
No
struggle, froze |
6 |
RETRIEVING The tester crouches beside
the pup and attracts its attention with a crumpled up piece of paper. When the pup shows
some interest, the tester tosses the paper no more than four feet in front of the pup,
encouraging it to retrieve the paper. |
Degree of willingness to do something for you. Together with
social attraction and following, a key indicator for ease or difficulty in training. Prey Drive |
Chased
object, picked it up and ran away |
1 |
Chased
object, stood over it, did not return |
2 |
Chased
object, picked it up and returned with it to tester |
3 |
Chased
object and returned without it to tester |
4 |
Started
to chase object, lost interest |
5 |
Did
not chase object |
6 |
TOUCH SENSITIVITY The tester locates the
webbing of one of the puppy's front paws and presses it lightly between his index finger
and thumb. The tester gradually increases pressure while counting to 10 and stops the
pressure when the puppy pulls away or shows discomfort. |
Degree of sensitivity to touch and a key indicator to the type of
training equipment required. *Do not use your fingernail when performing
this test. Press between the finger and thumb lightly then more firmly until you get a response.
|
8-10
counts before response |
1 |
6-7
counts before response |
2 |
5-6
counts before response |
3 |
2-4
counts before response |
4 |
2-3
counts before response |
5 |
SOUND SENSITIVITY The puppy is placed in the
center of the testing area and an assistant stationed at the perimeter makes a sharp
noise, such as banging a metal spoon on the bottom of a metal pan. |
Degree of sensitivity to sound. (Also a rudimentary test for deafness.) Prey Drive
|
Listened,
located sound, walked toward it barking |
1 |
Listened,
located sound, barked |
2 |
Listened,
located sound, showed curiosity walked toward sound |
3 |
Listened,
located the sound |
4 |
Cringed,
backed off, hid |
5 |
Ignored
sound, showed no curiosity |
6 |
SIGHT SENSITIVITY The puppy is placed in the
center of the testing area. The tester ties a string around a bath towel and jerks it
across the floor two feet away from puppy. |
Degree of response to a moving object, such as chasing bicycles,
children or squirrels. Prey Drive
|
Looked,
attacked and bit |
1 |
Looked,
barked and tail up |
2 |
Looked
curiously, attempted to investigate |
3 |
Looked,
barked, tail-tuck |
4 |
Ran
away, hid |
5 |
STABILITY An umbrella is opened about
five feet from the puppy and gently placed on the ground. |
Degree of startle response to a strange object. Fight and
Flight Drive |
Looked and ran to the umbrella, mouthing or biting it |
1 |
Looked
and walked to the umbrella, smelling it cautiously |
2 |
Looked
and went to investigate |
3 |
Sat
and looked, but did not move toward the umbrella |
4 |
Ran
away from the umbrella |
5 |
Showed
no interest |
6 |
STRUCTURE The puppy is gently set and
held in a natural stance and evaluated for structure in the following categories: Straight
front; Straight rear; Shoulder lay back; Front Angulation; Croup Angulation; Rear
Angulation (see diagram below). |
Degree of structural soundness. Good structure is
necessary. |
The
puppy is correct in structure |
good |
The
puppy has a slight fault or deviation |
fair |
The
puppy has an extreme fault or deviation |
poor |