The distinctive traits that define your dog’s character.
Personality, encompassing an individual's distinct ways of thinking, feeling, and behaving, plays a crucial role in human and canine experiences. Often, we refer to people with different personality types, such as being 'extraverted' or 'introverted', and research has shown that these traits remain the same over time.
Do dogs show similar, enduring personality variations as humans? Research suggests so!
Understanding how canine personalities might vary has wide applications – for example, it can inform the selection of candidates most suited to working roles such as guide dogs or police dogs, help potential owners select dogs likely to match their lifestyle & aid in the rehoming process for rescue dogs. Recognising and appreciating our dogs' individual differences can also enhance the bond between dog and owner, make training easier, set our dogs up to succeed and allow us to reduce the risk of behaviour problems developing.
Canine Personality Traits
Research suggests that dogs, like humans, exhibit enduring personality characteristics. Five main traits have been identified: Sociability, Playfulness,
Curiosity/Fearfulness, Aggressiveness, and Boldness. These traits influence a dog's unique temperament, shaped by genetics, early socialisation, and
environmental experiences. This five-factor personality structure was present across numerous breeds included in the research, suggesting it may apply to the species as a whole.
A similar personality organisation has been previously found in wolves,
suggesting that these traits have persisted through domestication and selective breeding. Despite these traits existing in the species as a whole, the level of each trait shows considerable variation when comparing different breeds. Significant breed differences were found in a study examining more than 11,000 dogs across 52 breeds. While breed alone didn't predict a dog's personality, certain breeds were more or less likely to exhibit certain personality traits, such as sociability.
It is important to note that age was found to impact results significantly, with personality testing of dogs becoming more reliable once they reach adulthood. Personality traits recorded in adult dogs show consistency over time, while those recorded in puppies are more prone to changes as the dog
matures. Personality measures of fearfulness, sociability, activity, and responsiveness to training showed most changes from puppyhood to adulthood.
This knowledge holds excellent potential to reassure owners struggling with their puppy's behaviour – they will not necessarily continue to act this way forever! This reassurance may go some way to reduce the risk of dog relinquishment, which peaks between the ages of 6 and 18 months. Why study personality in dogs?
Implications for Working Roles
Insight into dogs' personalities may have significant effects when considering working roles. Knowing the individual differences between dogs can help predict their likely responses to different situations, their strengths, and their weaknesses. This may allow for a more streamlined selection of potential working roles, saving time and money.
Indeed, research using candidate drug detection dogs has identified links between several personality traits and the successful completion of training programmes. Furthermore, these traits were highly heritable, with links to 6 key genetic markers meaning that this information may also help inform future breeding programmes.
Considerations in the Rehoming Process
Understanding a dog's personality traits is crucial in the rehoming process. Dogs with specific personality styles
“It is important to note that age was found to impact results significantly, with personality testing of dogs becoming more reliable once they reach adulthood.”
“Considering a dog’s personality traits helps owners understand and interpret their dog’s behaviours.”
may face challenges during the adjustment period. Knowledge of the individuals most likely to struggle with particular scenarios can allow proactive strategies to be implemented, which may reduce the risk of later behaviour problems. Informing potential owners of a given dog's personality traits may also help shape their expectations and allow more nuanced owner-dog matching processes.
Enhancing Understanding and Bond
Considering a dog's personality traits helps owners understand and interpret their dog's behaviours. This understanding strengthens the human-dog bond and improves the likelihood of successful training. Dogs' scores on the curiosity/fearfulness personality dimension were found to relate to owner ratings of relationships with their dogs, with those exhibiting more fearfulness rated as having closer emotional bonds to their owners.
Furthermore, findings suggest that dog personality traits may correlate with the personality traits of their owners. While the driving force behind these associations remains unclear, personality matching between dogs and prospective owners may increase the likelihood of long-term suitability, lowering the risk of relinquishment or unhappy dog-owner relationships.
Tailoring Care and Enrichment
Considering our dogs' personality traits may help owners make inferences about the kinds of situations and activities that their dogs may or may not enjoy or find stressful. This knowledge is power – by engaging in activities likely to suit our dog most and being mindful of situations they might struggle to cope with, we can boost their overall wellbeing and keep their stress levels to a minimum.
This, in turn, can reduce the risk of developing behaviour problems and be a critical factor in owner satisfaction and rehoming risk. A dog rating low on sociability, for example, may struggle in group class or daycare settings and may prefer individual or small group training sessions and walks. A dog rating high on playfulness may excel with and enjoy play-based training and toy-based enrichment, while a less playful dog may be more likely to enjoy different interactions with their owners, such as canine massage and food-based enrichments.
Dogs rating high in fearfulness might need slower and gentler introductions to new experiences than others, while dogs high in boldness may require more training on focus and recall to manage their sense of adventure!
Conclusion
The study of personality in dogs extends beyond mere curiosity; it holds profound implications for their welfare, working roles, and rehoming. Insight into a dog's personality facilitates informed decisions in selecting dogs most suited for working roles, identifying the environments a dog is likely to thrive in and the kinds of activities they're likely to enjoy, as well as increasing
the chances of harmonious dog-owner matches.i
Reproduced with permission from one of our favourite partners Edition Dog, Issue 66 2024, Author: Jess Barber - find out how you can read more amazing canine content at Edition Dog
