Puppy Personality Testing

So today is the big day for testing everyone's personality.  I likely won't be ready to post individual results until some time this evening, but in the meantime I would like to describe more-or-less what we are testing and how it all works.

Black snuggling up to my volunteer tester's feet.

A puppy personality test involves several brief tests, each evaluating a different aspect of the puppy's personality.  This kind of testing is not something that can be considered scientifically accurate, but it is designed to help understand the various traits a puppy has and what it might be like when it grows up.  Testing is usually done around 6-7 weeks of age, at which point the puppy's personality is set enough that it is unlikely to change a great deal.

To see what we based the testing on, feel free to take a peek here.

Black doing the Sight Sensitivity test.

Unfortunately the tests are designed for any breed of dog, and thus the testing on the Wolfhounds was a bit skewed.  So, while we administered the tests as described, we have chosen to use slightly different ratings than typical.  We also have some difficulty with the level of aggression that seems to be rated for what should be confident responses.

So, when I describe the testing for each puppy, please understand that we have modified things somewhat.  Some tests proved to be pointless, such as the Elevation test, where all the puppies are so used to be carried in and out of the house that they didn't care.  We also added a test I will call the "Cat in a Box" test.  This evaluates the puppy's reaction to a new, unfamiliar animal.

Blue doing the Cat in the Box test.

Overall, having the puppies tested in a new, unfamiliar environment, combined with a tester that they don't know brought out more timid responses than we would have liked.  This is likely due to the tendency of the breed to really notice changes to their environment and to want to investigate the environment.  Their ability to concentrate on the tester was compromised, though some puppies did manage to pay better attention than others.

Anyway, I will be posting the puppy profiles over the next several hours.  We didn't get any conformation shots today as the puppies were tired and we ran out of time.  However I did manage to take some photos outside afterwards.  Sadly I wasn't able to take many photos of the testing as the barn was dark and the bright light from outside made photography difficult.