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When choosing a dog, breed intelligence and temperament, among other things, are important considerations. If you already have a dog, how does your breed measure up?
Intelligence can be measured in more ways than one. Problem solving ability and instinctive ability are important qualities in a dog but, when tested in obedience alone, a dog trainers'survey produced some interesting results. When dog breeds were temperament tested by the American Temperament Testing Society, even more surprising results were recorded.
Alfons Ertel established the American Temperament Testing Society (ATTS) in 1977. The test simulates a casual walk through a park and focuses on stability, shyness, aggressiveness, and friendliness as well as the dog's instinct for protectiveness toward its handler, and/or self-preservation. The test is for all breeds and is uniform throughout the country. Approximately one thousand test events have been held, with 26,615 dogs tested as of December 2005 and 21,615 dogs have earned TT titles.
Listed below, in order, are dog breeds that understood new commands in less than 5 repetitions and obeyed first commands 95% of the time or better, along with their ATTS passing percentage.
# 1. Border collie, 79.7%
# 2. Poodle, 76.2%
# 3. German Shepherd, 83.1%
# 4. Golden Retriever, 83.7%
# 5. Doberman, 76.8%
# 6. Shetland Sheepdog, 66.9%
# 7. Labrador Retriever, 91.4%
# 8. Papillon, 79.7%
# 9. Rottweiler, 82.5%
# 10. Australian Cattle Dog, 78.1%
# Listed below, in order, are breeds that understood new commands in 5 to 15 repetitions and obeyed first commands 85% of the time or better, along with their ATTS passing percentage.
# 11. Pembroke Welsh Corgi, 78%
# 12. Miniature Schnauzer, 78.6%
# 13. English Springer Spaniel, 84.3%
# 14. Belgian Tervuren, 77.1%
# 15. Schipperke, 91.2%Belgian Sheepdog, 79.7%
# 16. Collie, 79%Keeshond, 80.2%
# 17. German Shorthaired Pointer, 75.9%
# 18. Flat-coated Retriever, 91.5%English Cocker Spaniel, 93.2%Standard Schnauzer, 66.1%
# 19. Brittany Spaniel, 90.3%
# 20. Cocker Spaniel, 81.7%
# 21. Weimaraner, 79.4%
# 22. Belgian Malinois, 90.2%Bernese Mountain Dog, 85.8%
# 23. Pomeranian, 75%
# 24. Irish Water Spaniel, 88.5%
# 25. Vizsla, 82.6%
# 26. Cardigan Welsh Corgi, 75.9%
# Other Breeds of Interest and their ATTS Passing Percentages
# Standard Smooth Dachshund, 66.7%
# Boston Terrier, 86.2%
# Beagle, 79.7%
# Dalmation, 81.6%
# Chihuahua, 67%
# American Staffordshire Terrier, 83.3%
# American Pit Bull Terrier, 83.5%
# Mixed Breeds, 85.4%
Average ATTS pass rate of all breeds, 81.2%
Written by: Joy Buthler
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