No More Homeless Pets Forum
May 23, 2005

When Dogs Fail Temperament Tests

Sherry Woodard

Dogs find themselves in hot water when they're labeled as aggressive or dangerous. Shannon Cummings of ShelterWorks and Sherry Woodard of Best Friends Animal Society help us understand temperament assessments, gauge if a pooch can be rehabilitated, and offer advice on training "problem dogs".

Introduction from Shannon Cummings and Sherry Woodard:

In an effort to find homes for the homeless animals in our communities, we encounter dogs who display behaviors that make their adoption success more difficult. Even the sweetest dogs have bad days. This "bad day" behavior can range from a dog who is ill mannered and jumpy to a dog who has bitten and caused serious harm.

How do you deal with these shades of gray? Spend a week with us discussing how behaviors manifested in your care may worsen or improve so that you can make more informed decisions about your adoptions and focus your resources.

Among the topics we hope to discuss are:
- Should there be a single standard of adoptability used by all agencies? Should we all be testing the same?
- How aggressive is too aggressive to be adopted from your facility? What sort of risk is your agency, volunteers, staff, and adopters exposed to when working with animals in your care?
- As an animal professional, is your perspective of normal dog behavior skewed toward expecting perfection or accepting aggression? Is there a healthy middle ground that would better serve your community's animal welfare movement?
- What are the joys and pitfalls of a rehabilitation program and which sorts of behaviors can successfully be treated in the shelter environment?

Please join us for a respectful dialogue about one of the most difficult and emotional aspects of animal sheltering.

Questions

Assessing aggression in a no-kill environment
Liability when placing aggressive dogs
Is a dog with a serious bite history adoptable?
True-to-life behavior assessment can be challenging
Basic guidelines to assess temperament
Are the guidelines different for small dogs?
Dogs who over bond to their trainers
What about dogs who aren't used to men?
Using labels to justify unnecessary deaths
Beating the nay-sayers at their own game saves lives
Appreciation

Assessing aggression in a no-kill environment

Question from Michelle:

How do you create a definition for aggressive animals and euthanasia policies to deal with an aggressive animal that falls within no-kill guidelines? Do you rely on temperament tests solely to determine whether an animal should be euthanized because it is aggressive, or should more be done to assess an animal? What do other no-kill organizations do?

Response from Sherry Woodard:

In this time of labels No-kill is a big one. I see people across the country doing a variety of different things with the No-kill label; many have clear definitions of what 'adoptable' means to them. Some see any threatening or guarding behavior as un-adoptable. Others have teams of staff/volunteers who look over any dogs with questionable behavior to decide if a behavior/training plan can help this dog to become adoptable.

I generally encourage everyone to think of everything that plays into each dog's behavior, sickness, injury, overall health, and environmental stress. Too often I see dogs with barrier issues labeled aggressive without anyone removing them from behind a fence, gate or cage. Some of these animals are highly adoptable when not feeling fearful and defensive.

I recommend that everyone who makes life decisions on behalf of the animals learn how to make full assessments. I travel and teach others how to define pass/fail policies. Here at Best Friends, in Kanab, Utah, we have workshops to teach people how to give dogs fair assessments and what can be done to change behavior and manage behavior for the rest of each dog's life. The next one is in September, more info at http://www.bestfriends.org/nomorehomelesspets/workshopsevents/.

I think the assessment team should be created with rescue in mind. I hope that people are involving their veterinarians as well as a dog's caregiver. Good kennel staff can often show people how the dog interacts after forming the quickest of relationships. Involving dog trainers to assess the possibilities for changing behavior is recommended. If you have a dog trainer who does not work with behavior problems you may want to find one that has this experience; the same goes for your veterinarian.

I meet many dogs in loving homes that have behavior issues that would present a problem if they were temperament tested! These families are managing behavior and many will adopt a similar dog to future. Some of these people have become dog trainers, the kindest of leaders and great adopters, fosters, volunteers, etc. They want to help save more dogs like theirs.

What do other no-kill organizations do? I am seeing more people placing animals in training programs and foster homes while working on changing behavior or creating a lifetime management plan that the dog can live with when placed in an experienced adoptive home. Animals are being saved by using behavior assessments properly and then working on the behaviors found during those assessments.

Response From Shannon Cummings:

I am so glad that you brought up this point. The "no-kill" philosophy is at the heart of so many agencies successes and also their troubles. First, let's separate "kill" from "euthanize". If euthanasia is for quality of life, then kill is for other things, such as "not cute enough" or "no space".

Many agencies that consider themselves no-kill do euthanasia procedures when animals in their care fall below set criteria for being behaviorally and medically sound. It is rare to find any agency that does absolutely no-killing or euthanasias and still steadily maintains an admirable quality of life for all the animals in their care. Most agencies say that no "adoptable (i.e., behavior)" or "treatable (i.e. medical)" animal will be killed. The standard of who is able to be behaviorally rehabilitated or medically treated depends on the resources of your agency. This gives agencies and communities the responsibility to set their own guidelines.

Having agency or community guideline can help agencies make these difficult decisions in a more educated and efficient fashion. It is my opinion and the opinion of ShelterWorks, www.shelterworks.us, that each agency needs to take a look at the resources and skills that they have on site, the network of support they have in the community (including other rescue groups, vets, trainers, etc.), and their pool of potential adopters when setting criteria as to what is an appropriate temperament profile for their community. Some agencies and communities hire an outside consultant to help them write these standards, while others do so internally with a cooperative effort of their staff, administration, trainers, and legal counsel.

What may work for another agency may not work for yours. For example, volunteers may be able to help teach manners to the jumpy dogs allowing you to focus staff time on something else. For other agencies, location is an important factor in terms of community tolerance for things such as on-leash aggression or access to dog-dog socialization. Urban density and livestock are issues that affect different types of adoption centers.

I think of temperament tests as an "entry exam" that comes in the form of a behavior assessment and/or behavior report from previous owners. But this is all that is... an entry exam! What the dogs do while in your care is just as important, if not more. Saying, "He did fine on his temp test", after he has been aggressive at an adoption center, is missing the point that the behavior assessment is "a moment in time", a quick evaluation.

If something happened that you didn't expect that means, that the test you conducted didn't glean the information, not that the behavior wasn't there. What the dog does while interacting with people in a more normal fashion is a more realistic picture of what the behavior is likely to be like in the adopter's home. Using the behavior of the dog while under your care, in addition to the entrance exam score, will better able you to follow things such as improvements or deterioration of the dogs' behavior while in the shelter environment. I do very much value the initial behavior assessment done with an animal. However, my continuing interaction with him/her provides even more predictive information.

That brings us to the point of what happens when a dog does fall into a category of aggressive. There is quite a range of semantics here from shy-to-growly-to-biting. Agencies are all over the board as to what standard of behavior is acceptable for adoption. Some keep and sustain a quality of life for more aggressive dogs, but would not put them up for adoption. Others set a very high bar of the initial temperament evaluation in order to prevent this from occurring under their watch. Regardless, make sure that the "aggressive" label is accurate (for instance, barking at dogs while they walk past does not accurately predict a dog that will fight with other dogs at the dog park or in the home). Then setting a standard of adoption that meets your agencies mission statement will help you reconcile when a dog is not adoptable from your agency.

As a back up plan, some no-kill agencies who set their "entry exam" score rather stringently, often have back up plans such as other rescue groups, foster situations, etc. to help out in the event that a dog needs more care and attention than was previously expected. Some can refer them to these places if their agency declines the animal from their program. Some no-kills who are adamantly against any killing will send the animal back to the facility where he came from to let the euthanasia happen there. While this plan will work to keep your board of directors happy that their 'put to sleep' (PTS) numbers are zero, there is often a lot of emotion upheaval on the dog and bad politic between agencies. Being able to look at save rate goals for the community will help you maintain relationships that aren't based on this "good cop/bad cop" mentality.

Again, no-kill does not necessarily mean that every animal is kept in your care regardless of whether or not they can meet a certain standard of behavior and medical soundness. It may mean, to keep the save rate in your community high and the euthanasias at a minimum, that standards of "adoptable" behavior need to be set and abided by. Setting guidelines allows agencies to better utilize their different resources to improve the overall save rate in their community.

Liability when placing aggressive dogs

Is a dog with a serious bite history adoptable?

Question from Susan:

In our rescue organization, we have several dogs that have earned the label of being dog aggressive. These are dogs that are otherwise very adoptable and have never shown aggression toward humans.

In a most recent incident, one of our dogs, who had never shown aggression before, suddenly attacked one of her companion dogs with whom she had lived for months. The victim dog had to have 79 external and 7 internal sutures, and is paralyzed on one side of her face. We have no idea of what provoked the attack.

Our problem now is how to find a dog like this a new home? We feel obligated to inform prospective adopters of this behavior, but this will almost certainly nix any desire they might have had to adopt this dog. The number of dogs we have that have attacked another dog is increasing, and we don't have the facilities to maintain these dogs for the rest of their lives. Is there anything that can be done to train a dog not to be aggressive to other dogs?

Response from Shannon Cummings:

My heart goes out in situations like these... lovely dogs who surprise us with such an aggressive responses. Assessing whether a dog who shows this sort of behavior can be safely housed in your shelter with an acceptable (if not admirable) quality of life and then safely, permanently re-homed are things that every shelter needs to consider.

When facilities start to see an increase in this sort of behavior, a careful evaluation needs to happen immediately. Is there something about the mental stimulation, play yard set up, group of dogs, supervision, feeding rituals, etc. than can be altered to provide an increased level of safety for the animals in your care? Facilities with the luxury of play yards often see their location as having an unlimited capacity when in fact the overcrowding could itself be a major factor in such events. For facilities without play yards, doing group dog-play sessions supervised by skilled volunteers is a great way to discover possible safe playmates and to more accurately diagnose aggression.

Unfortunately, this is one of those times where I think shelter employees have accepted levels of aggression that the general public will never (or extremely rarely) tolerate. This sort of attack is NOT the norm in the dog world (except in prey-drive situations between drastically different sized dogs). This level of aggression can result from an accumulation of stressors and/or overcrowding. The hardest part however, is that regardless of the "why" of the situation, once an animal has bitten, you have some very important information that cannot be ignored. In the training world, it is generally held that the severity of a dog's bite remains constant. This would mean that a dog with a bite history is likely to inflict similar damage if a bite occurs in the future. Rehabilitating dogs with severe bite history (according to damage), especially if the cause of aggression is unclear, has an extremely poor prognosis.

Sheltering Issues:
In the case of dog-to-dog aggression, this is an immediately difficult situation as space constraints often necessitate co-housing. Putting dogs together whose dog-social skills are only partially known is calculated risk. Even dog-aggressive dogs can sometimes make one or two friends who they can coexist safely with if properly introduced. In cases where a dog has done severe damage, your agency needs to decide what they feel their responsibility is to the safety of possible roommates. In shelters who use co-housing as a way to maintain a level of quality of life, then special arrangements need to be made in order to provide the mental and social stimulation that these single-housed dogs will need while in your care.

Adoption Issues:
Who would be an appropriate adopter for a dog-aggressive dog with a known "very damaging" bite? Certainly, it would be a human-only home with individuals that can hear such news and see the good in the dog. The adopters would have to agree to a lifelong management plan including precautions such as yards, fencing, and muzzles. If a dog with a severe aggression history is adopted out, he will have the best chance of success in the new home if the adopters have an accurate picture of the level of management required. Downplaying the issue with "its just a shelter thing" does a disservice to the dog and the adopter (not to mention their neighbors).

Animal welfare agencies have to ask themselves, "Is this a dog we would adopt into our home?" "Is this a dog who we would want our friends or neighbors to have?" "...a dog with whom we would gladly share a classroom or dog park?" Even very cautious adopters and training clients have slip-ups in their management. For dogs that squabble and scrap and have blustery non-injury fights, the cost of an occasional slip-up is some possible emotional damage and an adrenaline rush (on the part of the dogs and human companions). In situations of severe bite damage, the cost of a slip-up could easily be the life of another animal.

Response from Sherry Woodard:

I always suspect medical reasons in the case of a sudden behavior change. In my experience, I have often found that dogs pick up on weakness/sickness way before we do, so I recommend that all victim dogs be screened for medical problems. One thing that is difficult to see in advance is a seizure; a dog can have a small seizure without our knowing, and many dogs will attack another dog during a seizure.

I also recommend that the attacking dog be screened by a veterinarian for medical concerns as well. Full blood work, x-rays, or other tests may show medical reasons for her actions. Dogs cannot tell us if they are feeling strange or different but may become very defensive if they feel threatened by internal changes. I have met dogs with medical problems that will act aggressive (or defensive) toward all other dogs by lunging, snarling, and biting.

I don't think that this dog is doomed to homelessness because of what has occurred; finding a home for any dog can be a challenge. I have found that good quality photos and personal bios help. Please check out our resource library's section on adoption at
http://www.bestfriends.org/nomorehomelesspets/resourcelibrary/, and visit the forum archives on adoption ads that really work, at http://www.bestfriends.org/archives/forums/032805adoptionads.html. Be sure to include any cute details about favorite toys and games, whether the dog enjoys other animals or has 'allergies' to all other animals (needs to be an only pet).

Not all homes will want a social dog. Some homes offer a wonderful life in their house and yard without requiring the dog to participate in shopping trips, off lead activities, or visits to dog parks. I don't think the public will have a problem if some dogs are out wearing muzzles on walks, if it is seen as a safeguard for that dog and owner. We can help these owners with behavior plans for each dog. We can help the attacking dog learn to focus back to their person while near other dogs. I have had success teaching dogs social skills that either had a lack of socialization or had bad experiences/associations with other dogs.

For the rest of the dogs at the shelter, it's a great idea to offer all of your dogs a basic training program. This will not only help the dogs to be more relaxed and ready to go into their new homes, but you will also find they are emotionally healthier during their stay with you. A balanced curriculum includes daily interaction to practice commands, enrichment, such as offering some of their food in puzzle toys, hand feeding by staff and volunteers, teaching and practicing trades (such as agility), going out for walks, jogs, car rides, adoption events and sleepovers.

If dogs are having dog/dog social difficulties I walk them by other dogs that don't have social concerns, teaching them to focus on me as we pass. I walk them side by side with a safe space between dogs and again teach them to focus on me or reward them for focusing anywhere but on the other dog. Soon you have a dog that can walk past other dogs without making a fuss. I teach dogs to sniff that have been biting other dogs as a defensive greeting, using other dogs that are socially well adjusted. I recommend that you find a trainer who is doing this kind of behavior work to help you create behavior plans for dogs in general.

Do not ever allow dogs to practice un-wanted behavior or hurt the dogs that you have assisting you in a training session. I bring in my own dogs because their reactions are completely known, well rehearsed and allow me to focus on the dog that needs my help.

True-to-life behavior assessment can be challenging

Question from Michelle:

My current foster dog, who is about 1-year old, was taken into a traditional shelter after being a stray for four months. Animal control tried trapping her and finally was successful, but they had to shoot her with a tranquilizer gun to capture her. When they brought her into the shelter, they assessed her as aggressive. They called a woman from rescue who came to assess the dog at the shelter and she saw signs of dog aggression.

Thankfully, one animal control officer who spent a lot of time alone with this dog fought for her and ultimately the pup was transferred to a rescue. She ended up in my home and is great with my two other dogs and cat. She came to me obedience trained, she loves kids and people and she is extremely affectionate. I took her to the dog park this past weekend and she behaved wonderfully. The people at the shelter and rescue who thought the dog was aggressive all say she is a totally different animal today than what they witnessed initially at the shelter.

Does the stress of being in a shelter cause inaccurate temperament assessments? If so, how can a traditional shelter get around this when liability is such a concern and when their mission is to provide public safety? I've seen a lot of dogs labeled aggressive or shy in a shelter who flourish and act normal when placed into foster care. How can an organization safely gauge whether a dog is actually aggressive or whether their environment is steering unacceptable behavior?

Response from Sherry Woodard:

I love answering this question, because I pull dogs out of their runs quite often to take them for a walk to another space and show their caregivers a different dog. Being in a new environment is frightening. Add the sounds of other dogs, the absence of all that they know as routine, normal, comfortable, and all kinds of behavior may be seen. Some dogs will look shut down, shy/fearful, depressed, even angry.

I have been threatened by unhappy dogs that we (humans) have let down. I remove them from that space – sometimes while they are threatening me – and go out for a walk. Often they decide that I am okay while we are out walking, and by the time we return I can start handling them, teaching them and helping them to show who they really are.

I will not be the person who assesses this dog if I have become a friend, but I can clearly help the dog to adjust to this new situation and show his potential for creating new relationships. Using foster homes, outings, sleepovers (having volunteers take a dog home for the night), saves lives by offering these dogs a chance to become comfortable in different environments. We ask our fosters and volunteers to document how a dog reacts to real life situations which is a huge help in finding where each dog needs more work or already excels.

As for public safety, I would hand these dogs to trained staff and your best trained volunteers. In the right hands there should be no problems. Since knowledgeable handlers will see and feel behavior warning signs, they'll be able to help each dog. Find humane trainers who work with behavior issues and enlist them in creating your forms and guidelines for safe outings. Hold staff/volunteer trainings prior to any dog leaving your property. Many dogs will relax just by spending time out in the parking lot, moving around, relieving themselves and sniffing. This feels more natural to them than the shelter environment.

Response from Shannon Cummings:

Tests range in how they are written, conducted, and scored and it is impossible to talk about the predictive value of any of them without looking at controlling these factors. Surely I have been personally surprised by dogs who test well and then do poorly in the home, and vice versa, as I am sure many of you have seen. But overall, I find that a well designed, administered, and scored test is extremely helpful. Until there is another method of evaluation, behavior assessments are one of the best, albeit imperfect, tools we have. ShelterWorks is assisting in research being done to verify that there is some correlation between how a dog performs on a basic temperament test and their behavior in the home.

I too have seen lots of dogs "mislabeled" aggressive based on their behavior at the end of a catchpole or because they barked at another dog when on leash. Getting agencies to use a consistently applied behavior assessment, to read animal behavior better, and to better describe and diagnose behavior is very important. Too few facilities have actually decided on their own answer key by setting standards of adoption or definitions of aggression. Without a specific answer key, results of a "test" will vary depending on who is testing.

When ShelterWorks consults with individual agencies, we often find people very motivated to test but who are seeking to create a system of fairness and consistency in how the test is scored.

As a matter of note, I think that dog aggression (and separation anxiety) is one of the most inaccurately diagnosed behavior problems in shelters today. Unless a dog gets opportunities for off leash social time with other social dogs, there is no way to know if the dog is truly "dog aggressive." Leash reactivity and fence fighting are problems, but ones of noise and display, not injury. Having off leash dog-play sessions led by skilled staff and volunteers is a great way to be able to diagnose more accurately.

Certainly stress can affect the behavior assessment. However, this does not render information inaccurate. "How does the dog handle stress" is a valuable piece of information. Life in the shelter is stressful, being interviewed for adoption is stressful, and moving to a new home is stressful. Interestingly, this stress is something that seems to help more dogs pass the test than it hurts overall. (It is more common to see dogs who "shut down" and test smoothly than those who do something badly on the test due to stress). Some dogs, and humans too, are unbelievably sweet unless their buttons are pushed. A gauge of character may be how we behave in that particular moment. Surely, once we get to know dogs better, especially if we are fortunate to have extended, varied interactions with them such as during a foster stay, then we can learn even more about their personality. To use my analogy from a previous post, some dogs barely pass the "entry exam" but later show they can excel. And the reverse can be true as well.

What is important, especially in facilities where the "aggression" label will limit adoptions, is to test consistently and fairly, have the knowledge to read the dog's body language well enough to make a good decision, and have detailed standards of when such a label is appropriate.

Comment from Mary:

I think this is a topic of great interest and importance. It seems to me when you see people temperament testing dogs (often on Animal Planet shows), they are judging dogs as aggressive who have been literally starved and don't want anybody messing with their food dish. Isn't it a little much to expect a dog who has been so very hungry to put up with someone interfering with his/her food? I'm always surprised when these dogs don't react badly. I think they deserve a little time to get over the trauma of their mistreatment before any real judgment should be made about their temperament.

Basic guidelines to assess temperament

Question from Jonna:

How does one 'assess' an animal's temperament? I know there are no set guidelines, but I need SOME direction (e.g. how to see if they are good/bad with cats, kids, and dogs to avoid putting someone in danger). I volunteer at a shelter with all outdoor kennels.

Response from Shannon Cummings:

Behavior assessments can only give you an indication of what is happening in the moment. As my previous post articulated, they are not perfect, but they are being improved upon as more research is being done on their predictive value.

Cats:
Other than your super-high prey drive individuals or those you are willing to judge on breed stereotypes, there is no good way to screen for this. Some shelters have a resident dog-social cat who they have meet dogs in an attempt to discern this. This often backfires. If the dog's cage card says "good with cats", then an adopter is not likely to heed your advice of slow introductions in the home. Cat lovers will tell you that it is the individual cat that will train the dog. I generally believe that spending your time counseling adopters with cats on a safe and happy introduction is a much better use of time than a "cat test". Some dogs can learn to be very respectful of a cat they live with, but still see feral or outside cats as someone to chase. Adopter education is the key to success here.

Kids:
I do wish someone would find the perfect test for this! Kids are so varied in their behavior. Making sure that fearful dogs or ones that might accidentally injure a child in their exuberance do not go to families with kids is your best bet. Dogs that guard resources or who don't like to be handled probably do not want to live in a household with grabby youngsters and huggy teenage girls. There has been some research on "doll" testing to see if it was predictive, and there is no direct correlation. Interestingly, dogs who take a long time to work up the courage to investigate something new and a long time to recover from a startle response have been shown to correlate with kid-aggression.

Behavior Assessments should at minimum screen for things likely to happen during their stay in your care, during the adoption interview, and during the first 48 hours in the home. This might include general sociability with new people, tolerance of touch and handling, and comfort level of people near their food and toys.

Agencies that use foster care, field trips, or over-nights as part of their enrichment or adoption program will be best served by having volunteers/staff fill out a behavior report (good and bad). You will find a wealth of information in this, far more information than in a temperament test alone.

There are lots of different "prepackaged" tests on the market. ShelterWorks works with shelters individually to design an assessment appropriate for their particular resources and a criteria/answer key with which to score it. We can be contacted at www.shelterworks.us.

Response from Sherry Woodard:

First, I always remove the dog from his or her living space. I do the assessment in an area with as few distractions as possible, mainly out of view of cats, kids and other dogs. Then I would introduce cats, kids and other dogs at a distance of 8 to 10 feet and watch how this dog looks at them.

I would be inside a building to assess the dog with a cat to keep the cat safe. Keep the dog either held on lead by a person or tethered when the cat is in view. For safety, have a second person to be sure you see the dog's reactions at all times while the cat is being handled and watched. If the dog is relaxed while someone is holding the cat in plain view, make sure the dog sees the cat then place the cat on the floor while still gently holding the cat's sides.

Watch the dog for reaction; if the dog stiffens, stares without looking away, growls, barks or lunges, I would not place the dog in a home with cats without first working with the dog to see if the dog can have healthy relationships with cats. Please don't leave it up to your adopters to try to teach dog/cat social skills to the animals, since lives can be at risk. If the dog remains relaxed when the cat is on the floor, I would allow the cat to walk a little and I would pick the cat back up and have the cat jump about a foot from your hands to the floor, again watching the dog for a reaction. If the dog remains relaxed, I will hold the cat and allow the dog, at the end of the lead, to sniff the cat so I can still move away quickly if needed. This cat assessment is not a guarantee, as some dogs act differently once they have settled into a home. Many dogs will chase cats that are outdoors even if they are fine in the house. Please use cats that are not afraid of dogs so that this process is not a bad experience for the cats. Some other things to consider are that dogs may act differently with fearful cats that run from them, or with sick or special needs (handicapped/disabled) cats.

To see how dogs feel about children, I watch them watching children playing, running, walking by and just standing. If the dog can go to a park or outside a school yard you can make an assessment with those children or you can borrow your friends' or family's kids. ALWAYS KEEP CHILDREN SAFE. If the dog has a bad reaction and you do not know how to improve the dog's behavior, then please get help to safely change the dog's lack of social skills or bad association with children.

For dog/dog assessments I use my own dogs to help me with casual greetings. I have the new dog on lead while my dogs are off lead I watch how the new dog is looking at them and if the new dog is relaxed I allow him/her to move closer to my dogs. My dogs wait for the new dog to greet them. I keep the lead loose as they come near and sniff. I am not alarmed if hackles raise or someone growls. I wait to see if they are simply communicating. If the new dog jumps my dog or bites at my dog, it needs work on social skills. Often after some posturing the dog sniffs my dogs one at a time and begins to relax more. I introduce at least one male and one female to each new dog to see dog/dog social skills.

If you cannot do this yourself and stay relaxed and keep a loose lead, then have someone who can do your introductions. The handler being relaxed is very important because it allows the dog to communicate without adding your energy (fear) to confuse them. Many dogs lack social skills, and we can help them by teaching them to safely meet new dogs. If a dog has a poor greeting to new dogs it does not mean that it automatically needs to be an only dog; it may be demonstrating defensive behavior. Defense behavior often looks aggressive, but is based in fear and for most dogs this can be improved with training.

Also, I invite everyone to attend the twice-annual Dog Behavior and Handling Workshop I give here at Best Friends Animal Sanctuary. The next one is September 8-10, and participants receive my 32-page assessment workbook. For more info please contact humane.ed@bestfriends.org. Another great way to gain experience with behavior in general is to come spend some time volunteering at the Sanctuary!

Are the guidelines different for small dogs?

Question from Sue:

Being a small dog rescue, we often take in dogs that we do not have the luxury of assessing, simply because they are far away and arriving on a transport. In addition, small dogs as a rule behave totally different in a shelter situation than big dogs. They often react with fear aggression that usually resolves itself after being removed from the shelter climate.

In a rescue scenario (i.e. high volume foster home), is there a temperament test designed just for small dogs, and how many days should a dog be allowed to adjust and overcome his/her fear before a temperament test is done?

Response from Sherry Woodard:

I use the same assessment on all dogs, regardless of size.

I feel that if possible all dogs should have a week to adjust. People can help them to become more comfortable, but remember that the person assessing the dog should not be someone the dog has a relationship with and relationships form quickly. You can have someone come into your foster home and assess them in a room they are not living in.

I offer all dogs a blanket and a toy in the space where they are tethered for the assessment. My assessment is ideally used to discover a baseline for behavior, to identify where the dog needs help, and to create training and behavior management plans.

I then work with the dog and reassess for progress, the goal being that each dog is well known, better behaved, and properly placed. Please visit http://www.bestfriends.org/theanimals/petcare/dogs.cfm for details. I also provide guidance for the adopters, and use follow up calls to create and maintain a relationship will set the dogs and their new families up for success.

Response from Shannon Cummings:

I generally recommend about 48 hours or some sort of relaxation/adjustment time if that is possible, before testing the dog. This is a luxury that is not always available. Even if you aren't doing the selection yourself, someone is there doing the pick up and they have an interest in seeing you place dogs as quickly as possible (so you can help them again soon), so they should be amenable to following your instructions for minimal behavior and health requirements.

Since even small dogs can do quite a bit of damage, I don't test them very differently. I do understand that oftentimes it seems to be quite less of a concern from a liability standpoint (people don't often sue after being bitten by a Chihuahua), and I do see people tolerate much more aggression in their pint size dogs than their larger ones. The only thing I intentionally change about the test for small dogs (designed to cover general stressors the dog is likely to encounter at your shelter, your adoption interviews, and the first 48 hours in the home) is to add a "pick up" to the handling portion.

If you are lucky enough to have the dogs in a foster situation, then surely the foster parents are discovering the behaviors the dog is likely to exhibit in a new home. This is more reliable than any test you could perform. The downside is if there are no prescreenings, dogs may enter your rescue system who are inappropriate for your resources and adopters. You may decide to balance this with doing adoptions of small dogs in your own community so that you have the chance to do a prescreening and basic assessment before sending them to a foster situation or out on adoption.

Dogs who over bond to their trainers

Question from Mary:

What a great topic. I am a volunteer dog socializer at one of the shelters, and am currently undergoing the Open Paw training program along with all of the employees at the shelter who have contact with dogs. I think the concept is good although it will take time and patience to see the results.

Our most difficult obstacle is finding qualified trainers to train the two top levels of the program. In the meantime, I continue to take the dogs out for exercise and some basic training using food lures and the clicker. I would really like to learn more about recognizing and working with those dogs that could be considered problems. I try and work with as many dogs as I can, but I also try to focus on those that don't do well in the kennel, such as excessive barking, jumping, etc.

Currently I have a couple dogs who have really bonded with me in particular. I try to avoid them if people are trying to look at dogs in their area but it isn't always possible. When they see me they whine and search for me and when they finally find me, they begin barking somewhat aggressively at potential adopters. I will try and stand still until the behavior stops and not give them any rewards or attention until they stand still or sit without barking. Is there more that I can do to avoid this? In both cases these were dogs who were showing signs of stress and needed extra socialization, so I think I've become their security blanket, but maybe I'm putting more into it than I should? Thanks for any advice!

Response from Shannon Cummings:

Giving too much? Oh please. You GO, girl!

It sounds like you are giving a lot of love an attention to the dogs. Don't stop! I encourage you to help to get more people involved with the feeding, exercising, and interactions. I encourage you to look at other ways to use your volunteer time, perhaps either devote more of your attention to building a stronger volunteer base; or if you prefer to be with the dogs, spread your time throughout the kennel and work as many dogs as you can rather than focus on the few (as you stated you sometimes do). As much as you love each of these individuals, your presence when adopters are interviewing them is not helping them find a life long home. That would be a great time to do another task (there is always something to do) and let your training speak for itself.

During training sessions for this particular behavior, "waiting it out" as you have described above, does not seem to be getting the results you are after. I have four training suggestions:

1. Perhaps setting your goal for at least 5 consecutive seconds of quiet before interacting will help fine tune this method. This helps to make sure we aren't rewarding a fragment of silence when they were simply catching their breath; we don't want to accidentally train the behavior... "bark for 5 minutes in order to get a snack". We want the dog to be sure it was the quiet that produced the reward.

2. It might be more successful to try a "too bad" and walking away for 10 seconds or so and then return to try again. Once they realize the barking will literally drive you away, you may find they change their approach.

3. If it is truly impossible to not be there when adopters interview (can you walk another dog?), then you may need to get the dogs used to the fact that just because you are in the room doesn't mean they are the focus of your attention (i.e. get a good book and hang out without attending to them).

4. Start rewarding the dog for investigating or retrieving toys. Dogs who greet guests at the front of the kennel with a toy in their mouth are quite impressive – and "bark free". Stress reduction includes not only walk and playtime but also quiet time with people and quiet time alone blankets, toys, kongs, etc.

When dogs are kenneled for long periods of time they often start to display behaviors that were not seen at the beginning of their stay. Despite our best efforts, some dogs have a very difficult time with life in confinement. Many things, specifically discomfort with new humans, can get exacerbated in the shelter and have a tendency to get worse.

I would want to evaluate any dog that is "barking aggressively" at the potential adopters to be sure that it is a behavior that goes away when there are no fences. If the dog can be introduced in a quiet room and behave socially, then the kennel barking is simply a marketing problem. If the dog is behaving aggressively toward people regardless of fencing, then more may need to be done to evaluate the situation to rule out stranger aggression.

It would be great if dogs in shelters could learn to readily love all new people and all new dogs. Getting them regular affection and/or attention from a variety of people is one way to guarantee that they show their most appealing behavior when their potential new companion meets them. Daily interactions not only provide much needed mental stimulation and socialization, but also can have the added benefit of good manners and definitely aid in reducing or preventing stress related kennel behaviors.

Response from Sherry Woodard:

Because what the dogs want the most is you, you can give them a brief time out by walking out of their sight. This is clear communication to them that, "Barking or jumping causes my person to leave." Be quick to reward them when they get it right by opening a gate or giving a tidbit of a treat.

What would help the most is to have other people form relationships with these dogs as well, to help them learn to generalize that people mean good things will happen. Try taking someone with you if you can and only reward if the dog gives a proper greeting in the presence of your friend. Leave or at the very least turn away if they give un-wanted behavior.

If a dog greets properly, all 3 of you can go for a walk. Walks may help the dog start to open up to forming other relationships. I will walk with a friend and at some point on the walk pass the leash, keep walking and talking. As you do, you put a small distance between you and the dog.

Move in close and then out a little showing the dog that it is safe when walked by others. The other person can have yummy treats to impress the dog as you move away.

Hand feeding the dog that lives at the gate next door without a barrier scene will help them change associations. After watching another dog receive treats or food, they may be more willing to take treats nicely from strangers themselves.

Once you have nice greetings with the dog standing calmly, you can add asking for 'sit' or 'down'. Soon your reactive dog will be feeling better, behaving better and receiving more attention from adopters. You can probably get great photos of these dogs showing their best behavior so that potential adopters can see that this dog is being helped. Many shelters will place a photo with an approved bio at the front desk for the public to see, highlighting dogs that are being worked with and volunteer opportunities. Keep up the great work; dogs everywhere need us to help them learn to have healthy relationships. If they can do it with one person, then with our help, they can learn to love and trust others.

What about dogs who aren't used to men?

Question from Rachelle:

Do you have any suggestions for adopting out dogs who are aggressive towards men? Our group rescues out of animal control facilities, and we always end up with quite a few who have been abused by men in the past, and are no longer good around them. While many of these dogs, with patience and love, can learn that there are good men in the world, some of them simply cannot be in homes with a male.

These dogs do not show well at adoption events or in the shelter, so we rely heavily on the Internet to locate suitable homes. They are often with us for extended periods of time. Do you have any suggestions for finding good homes for such dogs? What has worked well for other groups? Any advice will be greatly appreciated.

Response from Sherry Woodard:

I have met dogs with known histories, which do not include any abuse, who nonetheless had preferences for men, for women, for adults, for skin colors, etc. I believe that, like us, dogs can have preferences with which they are more comfortable. Preferences and personal space are allowed, understood and for the most part respected by people for each other but not for dogs. Still, we can help dogs to learn to accept, ignore and or avoid any people with whom they are uncomfortable.

I try to have their primary care given by men, and not by just one man but as many as can be found who are willing. If the dogs don't learn to relax anywhere near a man their future can be very stressful. The most extreme will be best suited for female-only homes, but even then being able to relax in the presence of men is often needed.

Here at the sanctuary, we generally put them in an area of Dogtown where their caregivers will be male. We also have a male trainer and will recruit male volunteers to help the dogs learn to generalize.

I saw a dog like this today out with a male volunteer having a great time. Some people said she could never be safe near men because she had been so resistant to change. She had been lunging and had bitten more than one man before I met her. Now she just needs to continue meeting new men to manage her preference.

With any dog looking for a home, I use great photos showing a happy dog, write a bio about the dog's idea of fun, favorite people, toys, games, places to go, and animal friends. I give an outline for any restrictions that the dog might have. Before the dog goes home, a behavior plan for management of behaviors should be discussed because without management the best homes may allow dogs to get into trouble.

You can run personal ads in local newspapers and place ads in RV magazines, and trucker magazines. Deliver and post photos with his bio to libraries, bookstores, home supply stores, veterinary offices, and boarding kennels. Even some restaurants will feature a pet. Make your photo and bio classy; deliver it in a frame that can sit on a counter or be hung anywhere without damage.

Response from Shannon Cummings:

Probably the most common reason a dog will act fearful and/or aggressive toward something or someone is lack of early socialization. The most crucial time for this socialization is during puppyhood. Making sure that the puppies we deal with are socialized to all sorts of people and dogs and educating adopters about this issue is so important in order to prevent the dog coming back into the shelter system years down the road.

Anyone wanting to learn more about the importance of puppy socialization should check out Culture Clash by Jean Donaldson or any book written by Ian Dunbar (http://www.bestfriends.org/theanimals/pdfs/dogs/dogresources.pdf). Jean Donaldson has also been a guest on this Forum; the transcripts of her discussing how to make dogs in your shelter more adoptable are at http://www.bestfriends.org/archives/forums/dogmanners.html.

For dogs that aren't socialized to certain subgroups of people (race, gender, age) this can show up on avoidance/fear or aggressive displays. Men in general are a difficult subgroup from many dogs but this can be more often attributed to their various appearances versus negative experiences.

Placing a special needs dog is one of mission statement and expertise in handling the behavior on-site and one of marketing. Dogs that have aggressive displays to half of the population are very difficult to place. If your mission statement allows your agency to take on this kind of challenge, you may decide to focus your resources on a combination of sending the dog to a foster home and doing extra Internet promotion. A living situation with a man in the foster home could help the dog start to learn to trust men or help to diagnose if there is an issue that is more severe than has been discovered at the shelter.

If the dog is showing some timidity but no aggressive displays, you may want to attempt to "re-socialize them" (though this is never as easy as it would have been in puppyhood). Setting up careful introductions to men (lots of treats, happy talk, in a relaxed environment) in addition to scheduling extra male staff and volunteer attention, may be helpful in relaxing the dog enough to meet potential adopters.

As far as what other shelters do... It varies. Some shelters wouldn't have even noticed. Some would say that an aggressive display to 50% of the community is unacceptable. Some would make their decisions solely on the severity of the display. Some would wait for a suitable adopter, provide full disclosure, and then follow up.

I think some shelters are finding that they have a "niche" of success with certain special needs dogs. They focus their resources on that issue alone. They find that it is a better use of their time to specialize where they have worked successfully and placing those animals, rather than trying to fix and market a range of problems.

Comment from Laurel:

My own approach has been in line with Sherry's. We've had three or four dogs now that have been sent out on the road with a long haul trucker volunteer for "male bonding therapy". Euthanasia was seriously being considered for the first dog we tried this with, and now he has gone on to be adopted, earn his Canine Good Citizen and agility titles. Another had been in foster care a long, long time and was considered unadoptable. She is now up for adoption. The current "road dog" is making steady progress.

The fact is that a dog unsocialized to men is going to take a long time to place. If you spend that time teaching them, you could end up with a dog that has a wider choice of homes and will be a safer dog in the community.

By putting the dog in an environment where they are with a man 24/7 and totally dependant upon that man for all of their needs, using tools such as extremely tempting food treats, patience and the inability of the dog to retreat very far in the confines of the truck, it is forced to face and overcome its fears. The truck stop environments also seem to work well for gradual socialization rehab on these dogs as they meet people one or two at a time.

Facing fears, not avoidance, seems to work for dogs just as it does for people. Anything we can do to expand the pool of potential homes while making the dog more confident, safer and happier is worth it.

Using labels to justify unnecessary deaths

Question from Laurel:

I believe that this week's topic points to a serious problem that many shelters are inadvertently creating for those trying to assess the dog bite problem and come up with workable solutions.

The current popularity of "temperament tests", which claim to identify dogs with aggressive tendencies and cull them from the shelter population of "adoptable dogs", does, indeed, seem to raise the euthanasia rate for the reason of "aggression."

One shelter here that recently began temperament testing was asking the County's legal staff for an opinion on whether or not they should release dogs who failed the temperament tests to breed rescues. But, as they explained it to the County's attorney, these were "vicious" dogs. Needless to say, the attorney said "no way".

However, we have to wonder how many of those dogs are truly aggressive. Very few come into the shelter because they bit someone or threatened someone. The testing itself, in that environment, with dogs in those circumstances, leaves much to be desired. Add to that the variables of the human elements involved in the testing, and labeling those dogs "unadoptable," let alone "vicious," seems questionable.

Worse yet, it distorts the perception of the problem for the public and elected officials, barring the way to effective solutions. What more can we do to influence policy or to make sure the dogs are shown in their best light?

Response from Sherry Woodard:

I feel that assessments can be very valuable in helping us discover how animals behave. And, I agree the down falls are that assessments can easily be misused and unfair. I recommend that all people interested in being involved learn, not only how to assess fairly, but how to train dogs and modify behavior so that we can show each dog in his/her best light.

With proof of training, your shelter may be more open to creating a baseline assessment /re-assessment process for their dogs. As staff and volunteers, we can help these dogs to become more comfortable by being allowed to work on behaviors found during assessments. If the behaviors can be safely managed in a foster home or by an experienced adopter, as they follow a written behavior plan, then more dogs will be helped and their lives saved. I would approach shelters about changing their policy as a trained, organized individual or group of individuals with a written plan asking for a trial period.

I meet people across the country that have dogs in their homes that would not pass a temperament test. I will myself continue to remind everyone that the public is accepting of dogs having some so-called, "unwanted behavior." The dog-loving public creates and reinforces some of these behaviors in their dogs! We should be finding appropriate homes for as many dogs as possible. I think in the right homes dogs with behavior issues will be safe. They will be managed, protected and loved. I'm not saying that every dog is adoptable or will become adoptable. However, if we don't create programs to give people a chance to help the dogs and dogs a chance to improve, then we know that dogs will be killed that could be going into homes.

Response from Shannon Cummings:

Standards of adoptability vary greatly. Depending on which agency a dog shows up in, he may be administered a very similar test. However, his personal outcome has to do with how that agency may have written its answer key and what "label" they put on him.

Prepackaged tests are great tools, but an "answer key" (adoption criteria specific to that agency) needs to be established. Differences in mission statement, staffing and financial resources, community (urban vs. rural), potential adopters, current community save rate, etc. should direct what an agency feels it can place through its own adoption program.

To be more specific, lets imagine Fido is found as a stray by a local resident who takes him to a shelter to be surrendered. At Shelter A, when the dog arrives, they say "NO" and send him to a different facility. They don't even perform an evaluation.

At four other shelters the scenario could look like this. He is administered a relatively standard temperament test including handling, resource guarding, and social skills with people and other dogs. During this test, he growls at some point. According to a shelter's adoption criteria answer key, any of the following could happen:

Shelter B: After finding the growl, they stop the test and have a trainer do a more thorough evaluation. The trainer prepares a behavior modification plan and the staff and volunteers work with the dog every day until the time of his adoption.

Shelter C: He is neither labeled aggressive nor is he placed up for adoption. A rescue group is called to see if they can place him.

Shelter D: He is labeled aggressive and euthanized/killed.

Shelter E: He is made pet of the month and placed into a loving home within days.

It is the same dog, same test, and same performance on the test. At first glance it may seem like all these agencies SHOULD score the test the same. However each of these agencies may have different resources and mission statements. ShelterWorks believes that if every agency stays true to their mission statement and cooperates with other agencies, that the community's save rate will improve. If you want to run a rescue for tiny, perfect dogs that's fine. That gives me more time to work with the big, rowdy dogs, and someone else can take the special vet conditions, etc. We can have different roles and special niches in reaching a larger goal.

This variation means that different groups may tolerate different behaviors on an evaluation or may decline a dog that you will readily accept. Your adoption criteria may reflect a mission of breed, size, health, age, location, and/or other considerations. Some facilities have the luxury of staff time and space to implement training. Other facilities are so understaffed that anything beyond minimum care requirements is rare, and they try to find agencies better suited to meeting the needs of these dogs.

Labeling a dog as "vicious and dangerous" has legal implications (check your local ordinances) and is the responsibility of the Animal Control Agency. Animal Control agencies have the difficult job of unrestricted intake and few luxury resources. Some of the Animal Care and Control (ACC) agencies we have worked with have created a middle ground of definitions rather than a pass/fail system. While dogs that they feel are too dangerous to live safely in the community are euthanized, and some dogs are highly adoptable, there are some that fall somewhere in the middle. These dogs can be highlighted for the added help that a rescue or private agency may be able to provide.

Almost all "no-kill" agencies have small print saying "of adoptable animals" following the proclamation. But what is considered adoptable can vary greatly. It is becoming more common to see titles such as "limited intake" or "low kill", which is more accurate, but still somewhat confusing to the public. Agencies and communities of animal welfare activists spend an unreasonable amount of time telling each other what is adoptable, when we can all easily bypass this semantics nightmare by working toward improving save-rates. Calculations of save rates are less susceptible to double talk. Save rate is the percentage of dogs that enter your community's shelter system alive and that are still alive when they leave... simple as that. No definitions, no spin controls. Every agency can focus on their individual role within that goal and may have a different way of accomplishing it. With agency collaboration to improve community save rates, it's the animals that win.

Comment from Sue and Scott:

Why is it that humans see fit to judge those dogs most in need of our help as "unadoptable" and feel justified in killing them after so-called behavior tests that often only set them up to fail? Dogs with behavior issues are the product of abuse, mistreatment and neglect, at the hands of humans. Behavior problems are a mirror reflecting just how we have failed them.

All 6 of my current dogs would fail every behavior test available, and for no fault of their own. And all 6 of my dogs are loving, wonderful and deserving members of my family, each with their own special needs and each with their own extraordinary value and right to life. All dogs deserves a loving home that will accept them for who they are, just as we humans hope to be loved and accepted despite our many flaws.

Behavior testing should only be used as a tool to better understand individual behavior patterns or problems in an effort to best serve the dog; not to allow some humans to feel justified in their cruel culling in the name of "adoptability" and to keep so-called "save rates" high. Look into your own beloved dog's eyes and explain the justification of a "high save rate" at the expense of those dogs most in need of our compassion, understanding and acceptance.

Comment from Claire:

The whole subject of temperament testing makes me very nervous. The idea that dogs have to pass a temperament test in order to go to new homes is just so complicated. Anyway... I have a little Miniature Pinscher who couldn't pass any temperament test at all.

Mini, that's her, is so bad and naughty. But in the right home (mine!) she is fine. Well, with a little effort. She growls at me and snaps all the time. That's just her way. She's so small that she can't hurt me. I love her to pieces. I hate to think about her failing some temperament test somewhere and even being put down. She is one of my absolute favorites ever. She's such a little character.

Mini is also in a permanent dominance struggle with my top dog, Puggles. She always loses any argument. But she never quits. My top dog has learned (with my help) to be patient with Mini. Mini obviously wouldn't be good in a home with young children and with some other dogs.

There's just too much going on to just rely on a test, as the guests have mentioned... a lot of the variables, including health issues. Better to rely on a highly qualified trainer to make an assessment and advise on the kind of home that would be acceptable for that dog.

Beating the nay-sayers at their own game saves lives

Question from Ann:

Where do you start with temperament testing when the city shelter's criterion for "adoptable dogs" is "if they come to the front of the cage to lick the vet's hand"? I'm a volunteer at a city shelter in a large metro area. Until recently the focus of this shelter has been animal control only. Sadly, last year over 90% of the animals were euthanized. The Mayor and the Dept. of Health and Human Services have stepped in to begin making improvements. One major step is that increasing adoptions and decreasing euthanasia is now well within the mission of the shelter. The shelter currently does not adopt out Rottweilers, pit bulls, Chow Chows, Akitas, German Shepherds, or Dobermans but is willing to re-evaluate this policy.

The Mayor has set up a task force to look at animal overpopulation, and they are also examining adoption criteria for the shelter. I realize it's a broad question, but how best can the shelter begin to set up a standardized process for determining which animals will go into the adoption program?

Response From Shannon Cummings:

This is a great question and one that is the focus of many of ShelterWorks seminars. The process is a daunting one but should include an honest look at your agency's mission statement, resources within the community for animal owners, other agencies and rescue groups with which you can collaborate, staff and financial resources, etc.

Every agency, but especially government agencies, need to establish what they are willing to accept in terms of risk to the public. There are no legal precedents other than (often outdated) dangerous dog laws and breed bans, but liability is a very big issue and shelters should protect their agency as well as the animals they serve.

Breed bans is a topic beyond this context, but if your community has a local breed ban, methods of making these dogs available to outlying shelters may need to be discussed. Your agency will also need to decide if breed, health, and age are factors. ShelterWorks generally encourages temperament and sociability to be the number one criteria. Please remember, just because a dog does not "Pass" your adoption criteria does not mean that he cannot be made available elsewhere.

ShelterWorks' most popular workshops have focused on resource allocation and rescue partnerships to increase the save-rate through improved working relationships within the community. The feedback indicates that these workshops helped participants define their own mission statements, be more aware of other agencies' goals and to become more solution-oriented in their approach to working with others. The CommunityWorks program (http://shelterworks.us/seminar.htm) is an interactive workshop designed to involve individuals from various positions in animal welfare, including all levels of shelter workers and managers, rescue organizations, trainers, veterinarians, and activists. We review the most important elements of shelter work and utilize interactive activities to guide attendees through the process of building a community needs assessment. Identification of how one's mission statement and role in the community affect the overall network of animals creates positive working relationships and reduces duplication of resources.

It sounds like you are in an agency that is struggling with overcrowding: prevention campaigns such as spay/neuter and cooperation with neighboring agencies are of immediate importance. There are pre-made behavior assessments on the market, but an agency preparing to implement a testing program needs to establish an answer key appropriate to their particular agency and/or community, needs to teach the testers to do the behavior assessment in a fair and consistent manner, and needs to create a plan for dogs that fall below their own adoption criteria.

Response from Sherry Woodard:

Until a more appropriate behavior assessment protocol is in place, it sounds like the best plan is to beat the authorities at their own game! My first thought is for you to have a variety of people walk through and hand feed the dogs at the front of their cages. This is not the only answer but hand feeding at the front of each cage will encourage many of the dogs to start walking up looking for food. This teaches the dogs to have a better association to people, and replaces their fear reaction from feeling cornered and stared at. You can have the dog's regular food measured out ready for volunteers and passing staff to give them throughout the day.

For the big picture, I recommend you look to other cities that have gone through this and are doing well. At the same time, send some people out for training so that you create work teams. For example, an adoption team can be made up of staff overseeing volunteers, but first the staff must be trained. An assessment team can assess the dogs and create written work plans for each dog, and then staff and volunteers can start working with the dogs.

The public in your area should be told that the shelter is changing and that you will have people helping during and after the change. You can recruit volunteers for your foster home program, and they can act as your work force to help create the change.

As far as breed policies go, I look at each dog as an individual. When making adoption recommendations, what a dog was bred for and how those breed characteristics may affect them is only one consideration. You can contact breed rescues for all the breeds listed above; ask them to come and educate everyone at the shelter about the various breeds. Specific breed rescue groups can help you create a guideline for appropriate placements.

Thank you for being a volunteer!

To everyone who has taken part in this week's forum, thank you for your kindness. Your work with the animals is greatly appreciated, not only by the animals but also by all the other people working toward a time when there will be No More Homeless Pets.

Appreciation

Comment from Mary:

I just wanted to thank both of the guests for all of the good advice they have given. I have learned much this week, and look forward to putting some of it to use when I go back to the shelter for my volunteer work. It has also inspired me to look further to see how I can get more training so I can help the dogs even more. Thank you from the bottom of my heart for all of the shelter and rescue dogs that we all have come to know and love!

Note from Forum Moderator:

To problem-solve for specific dogs and behaviors, please refer to the supplemental resources mentioned by the guests during the week, including hiring a gentle, private trainer or behaviorist who can be of assistance. Also, for additional suggestions, please feel free to explore http://www.bestfriends.org/nomorehomelesspets/resourcelibrary/.

For more information please see transcripts other Forum weeks, including an entire section on Shelter Operations and Animal Care posted in our No More Homeless Pets Forum Archive, http://www.bestfriends.org/nomorehomelesspets/weeklyforum/forumarchives.cfm.

As always, thank you for everything you do for the animals!

When Dogs Fail Temperament Tests

Introduction from Shannon Cummings and Sherry Woodard:

Questions

Assessing aggression in a no-kill environment

Question from Michelle:

Response from Sherry Woodard:

Response From Shannon Cummings:

Liability when placing aggressive dogs

Question from Courtney:

Response from Shannon "not-an-attorney" Cummings:

Response from Sherry Woodard:

Comment from Seda:

Is a dog with a serious bite history adoptable?

Question from Susan:

Response from Shannon Cummings:

Response from Sherry Woodard:

True-to-life behavior assessment can be challenging

Question from Michelle:

Response from Sherry Woodard:

Response from Shannon Cummings:

Comment from Mary:

Basic guidelines to assess temperament

Question from Jonna:

Response from Shannon Cummings:

Response from Sherry Woodard:

Are the guidelines different for small dogs?

Question from Sue:

Response from Sherry Woodard:

Response from Shannon Cummings:

Dogs who over bond to their trainers

Question from Mary:

Response from Shannon Cummings:

Response from Sherry Woodard:

What about dogs who aren't used to men?

Question from Rachelle:

Response from Sherry Woodard:

Response from Shannon Cummings:

Comment from Laurel:

Using labels to justify unnecessary deaths

Question from Laurel:

Response from Sherry Woodard:

Response from Shannon Cummings:

Comment from Sue and Scott:

Comment from Claire:

Beating the nay-sayers at their own game saves lives

Question from Ann:

Response From Shannon Cummings:

Response from Sherry Woodard:

Appreciation

Comment from Mary:

Note from Forum Moderator: