AKC Temperament Testing

There are 201 AKC recognized breeds. One of the things that makes a specific breed unique is not only the dog’s physical appearance, but each breed also has its own distinctive temperament.

The AKC Temperament Test (ATT) was developed to bring focus and provide a meaningful evaluation to assess the temperament of our canine companions.

The ATT tests how a dog reacts to a variety of stimuli. Desirable traits are that the dog will be emotionally stable, inquisitive, cooperative, appropriately social for its breed, biddable and demonstrates the ability to recover from a startling situation in a reasonable amount of time.

Undesirable traits are fear, shyness, lack of cooperation and an inability to recover from unfamiliar or unexpected situations. Examples of undesirable behaviors include being afraid of friendly strangers or unfamiliar stimuli, obsessive barking, and aggression.

In the ATT, dogs are tested in 6 categories of stimuli that include:

1. Social

2. Auditory

3. Visual

4. Tactile

5. Proprioceptive (motion)

6. Unexpected stimulus