You’ve examined the evidence, heard the success stories, and decided your shelter is ripe for launching a temperament evaluation program. But where do you begin? In the last issue, Animal Sheltering examined the “whys” behind assessments. The following set of articles discusses the rest: which animals should be evaluated, who should be involved in the process, where and when the assessments should take place, and how to make use of the results.

(Photos by Nan Kené Arthur/San Diego Humane Society and SPCA)

WHICH ANIMALS SHOULD BE FORMALLY ASSESSED?

It's no surprise that a snarling husky surrendered for severely biting a two-year-old will not be a candidate for adoption and need not be evaluated. The same would probably be true for a 15-year-old border collie in the final stages of kidney disease. But any dog who may become a family pet—even the one with the friendly tail wag and wouldn’t-hurt-a-fly eyes—should first be evaluated before adopters even get the chance to see him.

RELATED INFORMATION Behavior Evaluation Resources Is your organization working to establish or improve a behavior evaluation program? Be sure to check out these resources for additional guidance and information.

And that includes puppies, say many evaluators. Evaluating baby dogs is the subject of some debate, but advocates of puppy assessments point to the success of existing programs to make their case. “At our shelter [before we evaluated them], puppies had the highest return rate and many were returned—while still puppies—for aggression,” says Janet Smith, behavior program manager for the Capital Area Humane Society in Lansing, Michigan. “With temperament testing, returns of puppies are down.”

In collecting data on the effectiveness of temperament evaluations for two years, Kelley Bollen of the Massachusetts SPCA evaluated almost 200 eight-week-old puppies and found that 10 percent of them failed because of aggression. “We all know that behaviors are a product of both nature and nurture and that you can’t separate the two,” says Bollen. “But I feel that eight-week-old puppies who show aggression are genetically prone to be more aggressive. Genetically based behavior is certainly more difficult to modify than learned behavior.”

But not everyone agrees that puppies are behavior evaluation material. Citing research showing that temperament assessment results aren’t good predictors of adult behavior, animal behaviorist Emily Weiss says it’s possible to work with puppies displaying aggressive tendencies. “For puppies who demonstrate ‘dominant’ or ‘confident’ behaviors,” says Weiss, who created the widely used “SAFER” evaluation, “we can quickly bring these behaviors around.”

The Cat Conundrum

Though they may sometimes play like little dogs, cats are cats—and therefore can’t be assessed using the same tools, say many evaluators.

Whether your organization decides to evaluate puppies prior to adoption or not, the bottom line is that shelters should do all they can to make sure the dogs and puppies they send into the community do not pose a danger to people and other pets.

And from a safety and accuracy standpoint, the intense, formal evaluation process may not be as revealing—or as necessary—for the feline set, say some behaviorists. “Cats are cats—not little dogs. They are not as social as dogs and they are not as socialized as dogs,” says Bollen. “We take dogs for walks, in the car, and to the park. Visitors, strangers, children, and other dogs interact with dogs all the time. Now think about cats: they live in our home, don’t go for walks, they don’t ride in the car, they do not generally meet a lot of different people. They are simply exposed to much fewer things than dogs.”

Some cats surrendered to shelters may be venturing outside the confines of the house for the first time; the car ride, the cage, and the experience of seeing, hearing, and smelling other cats could be all new to them. Add to that the prying eyes and hands of strange two-legged beasts, and the situation is exacerbated. “This is stressful, and because of that many very docile cats become extremely fearful or aggressive in a shelter,” says Bollen. “Consequently, a temperament evaluation may not be able to identify the true personality of a shelter cat.”

It hasn’t stopped some shelters from trying, however. At the Town Lake Animal Center in Austin, Texas, staff use a cat behavior evaluation program in conjunction with the canine counterpart.

“The in-cage evaluation was designed to identify fear level, ease of handling, aggression level, and friendliness,” says Kimberly Barry, PhD, the shelter’s animal behaviorist. “It [was designed] as a screening process to figure out who goes up for adoption and who doesn’t, and as a matchmaking tool for adoption.”

To uncover often hidden attributes in cats, staff may focus on how they respond to petting or other stimuli.

But almost all cats are deemed adoptable following the screening, Barry says. That’s because most who are unsuitable for adoption—such as those deemed too aggressive—are identified early on, at intake or during a medical exam, before they ever reach the behavior team. Recognizing that they need to alter the program to make use of limited resources, Town Lake shelter staff are shifting the focus from screening with formal behavior evaluations to matchmaking with a comprehensive behavior assessment package. By revamping the intake questionnaire and interview process, staff hope to elicit more details on specific behaviors. And by involving more staff and volunteers in the process, they hope to more accurately describe and report routine behavior they see in cats.

But Barry doesn’t recommend throwing out the “test” portion in favor of other tools for learning about cat personalities. Rather, a scaled-down evaluation performed while the cat is in his cage or, ideally, in a small quiet room, can reveal important aspects of his behavior that will help adoption counselors match people with cats based on something other than looks. To uncover these hidden attributes, evaluators may focus on a cat’s reaction to someone approaching or reaching into his cage; if the kitty solicits petting and attention, he may be the perfect companion for the adopter who prefers an attentive, affectionate cat. If he seems indifferent to attention, he may settle comfortably into the home of an adopter who admires the elusive, aloof cat.

WHEN AND WHERE SHOULD ANIMALS BE EVALUATED?

Finding the right time to formally evaluate dogs is a tricky business: poor timing can easily change the outcome of a behavior assessment. Evaluate a dog too early and he may not reveal his true self; the sights, sounds, and smells of the shelter environment are often overwhelming to even the most boisterous newcomers.

In fact, contrary to popular belief, premature evaluations typically result not in more dogs failing but in more dogs passing. “That’s because dominant dogs haven’t settled in and will act tolerant,” says Sue Sternberg, creator of the Assess-a-Pet temperament test and author of Great Dog Adoptions: A Guide for Shelters. “Later, after they’ve had time to adjust, they’ll show you what they’d be like in a home.”

But waiting too long to perform an initial evaluation can also skew the results. While it’s stressful to enter a shelter for the first time, it’s also stressful to stay in one, says Kelley Bollen of the Massachusetts SPCA. “Dogs who are fine after a few days may start to lose their marbles with each passing day,” she says. “Dogs become frustrated and annoyed, and thus stressed, by the barrier of their cage, the barking of other dogs, the stress of pheromones in the environment, the loud annoying music the staff plays, and the silence and loneliness of the 15 hours between closing time and the next morning. They also suffer from sleep deprivation in the shelter.”

As a result, affable and adoption-ready dogs might turn into “whirling dervishes” and be more prone to stress and disease, says Becky Schultz, coordinator of animal training and behavior programs for the Animal Humane Society in Golden Valley, Minnesota. “The longer they’re there, the more undesirable behaviors they can develop, regardless of how well you enrich their environment,” she says.

Ideally, then, behavior experts recommend that shelters should wait at least 24 to 48 hours before conducting an evaluation on a new arrival. Some urge shelters to wait as long as three, five, or even ten days—particularly in the case of an owner-surrendered dog, who typically won’t be at ease for a while because he’ll still be waiting for his owners to come back.

A shelter’s available resources and the demographics of its incoming populations will heavily influence the logistics of a temperament evaluation program. If an already packed facility is inundated with owner-surrendered dogs, the organization may not be able to hold every incoming dog for several days without displacing adoptable dogs in the kennels. In that situation, the best option may be to evaluate the new dog as thoroughly as possible, even if the assessment is taking place earlier than usual.

When to Evaluate—Again

Depending on the length of their stays, dogs can—and often should—be evaluated more than once anyway. Sternberg recommends that a dog held longer than 30 days be reevaluated at least every month—and possibly every two weeks if the dog’s extended stay isn’t being managed through training and consistent, frequent socialization. Kenneled dogs held for longer periods should be allowed to unwind in a more relaxed environment, such as a private room with classical music, for a few hours before they’re formally evaluated, Sternberg says.

Animals who have just arrived in a shelter may be frightened, overwhelmed, or unusually excitable, so experts recommend waiting at least 24 to 48 hours before conducting a behavior evaluation.

And it’s important to reevaluate dogs who land in that “gray area” of the evaluation—for instance, those whose potential for threatening “resource guarding” behavior can’t be easily diagnosed because the dog just ate half an hour earlier. Testing recently fed dogs later when they’re a little bit hungrier might yield a more accurate picture of their temperaments. Other reasons to retest might include strange “looks” or slightly tense postures—those clues that a casual observer may not detect, things that are hard to pinpoint or mark on a score sheet but that cause the evaluator some unease.

When deciding whether a particular dog should be reevaluated, remember that you can never have too much information. “Common sense should tell us the more we learn about the animals in our care, the better able we are to take care of them and make important decisions about them,” says Janet Smith, behavior program manager for the Capital Area Humane Society in Lansing, Michigan.

Setting up new conditions for subsequent evaluations may help reveal new responses and personality traits. “It’s valid to test at different times of the day,” says Sternberg. “It’s valid to have someone else perform a new evaluation. And it’s valid to reevaluate the dog after he’s gotten exercise.”

Choosing the Site

You wouldn’t want to have a serious conversation or an intimate get-to-know-you date in a bar packed with movement, people, and noise. The temperament evaluation is no different. Much like a job interview or a therapy session, it should be conducted in a quiet space where both the subject and the evaluator can feel at ease. An indoor space away from other dogs, distractions, and obstructions is ideal, but anything from an unused storage room to a trailer could be turned into an evaluation area.

“If you don’t have a separate, empty room, compromise,” says Sternberg. “Try a hallway or bathroom.”

If the chosen site is in a well-trafficked area, a sign explaining what’s taking place will help ensure no one interrupts. The posting can also be used to educate people about the process itself.

Some shelters that restrict the number and kinds of animals they take in have been known to perform behavior evaluations immediately—and in the owner’s presence—to avoid having to call the owner back to the shelter if his dog is deemed unadoptable. But when assessed under those conditions, dogs are less likely to provide evaluators with a realistic picture of their personalities. To get accurate results, animals should be evaluated in an unfamiliar place and with unfamiliar people.

WHO SHOULD BE INVOLVED?

"WANTED: Unbiased actor, stuntman, animal care professional with solid knowledge of animal behavior and excellent observation and interpretation skills.”

That job description may seem like a tall order for a process that appears to be so short and straightforward, but performing an evaluation and analyzing results correctly requires expertise.

You don’t have to become a professional trainer or earn a doctorate to conduct behavior assessments, however. Even though people with those qualifications can make ideal evaluators, what’s most critical isn’t necessarily the credentials that follow your name but your relevant experience and training.

“Largely it’s a matter of knowing how to read dogs, and shelter staff generally are very good observers of dogs,” says Sue Sternberg, creator of the Assess-a-Pet temperament test and author of Great Dog Adoptions: A Guide for Shelters. “We are the people who work with dogs every day. We are the people who are responsible to the community who adopts these dogs.”

It helps to possess some theatrical ability, too. You don’t have to be a student of Shakespeare—just an alert observer of the average pet owner’s behavior and a good character actor. Being able to fool the dog about who you really are will help you handle him as if you were an inexperienced, first-time dog owner, says Sternberg.

“During the resource guarding, I’ll walk up with the [Assess-a-Hand] and try to take the chewie or food away just the way my mom, decidedly not a dog trainer, might,” says Trish McMillan, a professional dog trainer and shelter volunteer. “I may say, ‘Hey, you—get out of there, pup! That’s not yours! Gimme that!’ I try not to be too loud or frightening, but not too slick either. I think this bit of amateur acting gives me a better idea of how the dog will react around ‘normal’ people.” (And if you wear a uniform, exchange it for some civilian garb: dogs may feel intimidated by a cop-like ACO outfit and may not show you who they really are.)

Of course, grabbing a chew toy away from a possessive, aggressive dog isn’t for the faint of heart. Evaluators must possess enough canine communication skills to not only rate the dog accurately but also predict when he may bite so that, if necessary, the evaluation can be postponed or suspended. Decisions about these situations should be supported by management; if it’s already clear that a dog is aggressive, for example, misplaced policies requiring the evaluator to perform a “hug test” before making decisions about the dog’s status only put staff at unnecessary risk. Safety procedures must be written into the evaluation program to protect the staff from dogs who are giving warning signals.

Such measures should include the requirement that two people participate in each evaluation. “For safety and ability to see every signal the dog is giving, it is absolutely imperative that there be two people present,” says Chelse Wieland, animal behavior coordinator for the Dane County Humane Society in Madison, Wisconsin. But three or more may be a crowd and could create a stressful environment for the dogs—in turn risking the accuracy of the results, says Sternberg.

A single evaluator conducting assessments by himself could also threaten the validity of the evaluation because of the potential for projecting inherent biases onto a dog. In addition to possessing animal behavior knowledge, handling skills, acting ability, and a keen interest in self-preservation, evaluators should be objective in their poochy preferences. “We all have a tendency to like a particular type of dog and, therefore, we may modify our behavior around those dogs to whom we are partial,” writes Emily Weiss, PhD, creator of the “SAFER” behavior evaluation. “All dogs, regardless of breed, must be treated and tested equally.”

An Unfoolish Consistency

Subjectivity may be an issue even in the analysis phase of assessments. Especially when there’s more than one evaluator working with the same animal, interpretations of the dog’s behavior and reactions may vary. Taken to an extreme, evaluator Eileen may judge Rufus to be “a bit mouthy and energetic,” while evaluator Ellie may see Rufus as dangerously aggressive.

To prevent these chasms in assessment results, the behavior coordinator at the Humane Society of Vero Beach, Florida, performs most of the shelter’s evaluations, assisted by animal care staff. “By having one experienced person overseeing the evaluations, we find greater consistency and objectivity in the process,” says executive director Joan Carlson Radabaugh.

This isn’t to say that consistency and objectivity can’t be found in evaluation programs with multiple evaluators. The key is to find and carefully train evaluators who can check at the door any bias or breed prejudice and to use standardized procedures and forms to record the dog’s responses. “The form should contain descriptions of behavior—‘stiffened,’ ‘snarled,’ ‘hackles up,’ ‘dilated pupils,’ ‘growled,’ ‘snapped,’ ‘lunged,’ ‘bit,’ etc.—rather than interpretations of the behavior [such as] ‘scared,’ ‘mad,’ ‘angry,’ ‘aggressive,’ etc.,” says Bollen. “This will allow for a more objective evaluation, regardless of who is administering it.”

Consistency in training procedures can also help maintain the same standards for evaluating. With an evaluation program already in place, a shelter can employ a train-the-trainer approach, similar to the one used by the Dane County Humane Society in Wisconsin, where evaluators don’t become “official” until they observe 20 assessments and perform 15 in the presence of a more experienced assessor. And at the Sacramento SPCA, a “behavior liaison” conducts the initial training for any new person coming onto the team.

In the end, the test is only as good as the tester. A well-meaning evaluator can quickly cause a scared dog to panic. The handler who walks into a kennel, leans over a dog, and immediately attempts to put a leash on him may easily make him feel scared, cornered, and threatened: “[The dog] has little choice but to growl as a warning and then cower,” says Weiss. “If that same handler entered the cage in a sideways position, eyes averted, and then crouched and allowed the dog to approach, that dog would likely display a submissive position and quickly warm to the handler.”

As Weiss points out, many dogs who growl in their kennels aren’t likely to bite and often make wonderful family companions. A behavior evaluation performed correctly by a trained evaluator will not only uncover aggressive behaviors in dogs who at first look friendly but also reveal that hidden gem of a dog who otherwise may have been overlooked.

Making It a Team Effort

No matter how well they’re performed, however, behavior evaluations are likely to generate some misunderstandings among those who view these assessments as contributors to tough “life and death” decisions.

“It is so very hard even for shelter professionals—kennel staff, management, volunteers—to understand that that dog that they walk in and out, that volunteers handle, that they feed daily, whose kennel they walk past, has the potential . . . to bite,” says Janet Smith, behavior program manager for the Capital Area Humane Society in Lansing, Michigan.

If a dog well-liked by staff and volunteers has to be euthanized, it’s the evaluation team that often bears the brunt of the criticism. It’s not fair to the staff or the animals to ask one person to make such weighty decisions by herself. Management must help answer the big questions: This dog has been here for two months and is showing signs of kennel stress—what should we do? and That dog snarled at the Assess-a-Hand but did fine otherwise—should he be euthanized?

Appointing decision-making committees and including a cross-section of staff in the overall evaluation program helps demystify the process and build shelter-wide consensus. Teams of staff members can work together to develop evaluation criteria, which should then be applied without exception. “The actual testing then does not put any . . . shelter worker in the position of judge—the person is simply measuring what the dog does on the test,” says Jean Donaldson, director of the Academy for Dog Trainers at the San Francisco SPCA.

Staff members who aren’t on the decision-making committees can become involved in evaluation programs through other interactions. If managers are open about the process, staff will feel more invested. “Include kennel people, dog walkers, and others by having them watch evaluations and inviting them to ask questions,” says Sternberg. “Hold biweekly staff meetings where behavior evaluations are one of the agenda items, and encourage people to share opinions.”

Sacramento SPCA staff learn about the shelter’s program with the help of an educational binder that explains different segments—including why each part of the evaluation is included and how dog’s responses are interpreted in relation to child safety, says behavior specialist Val Masters. “There will always be people who don’t agree with it,” Masters says, “but we do our best to teach them the importance of the evaluation and why each portion of it is included as it relates to day-to-day living and interacting with a dog.”

Open Some Options

But if it’s really true that seeing is believing, there’s no better way to explain evaluations to staff, volunteers, and board members than to invite them to watch. Relaying to a distraught volunteer that her favorite dog was euthanized because he “displayed aggressive tendencies” may not be the best way to help her understand.

“We welcome staff and volunteers to watch our temperament testing,” says Becky Schultz, coordinator of animal training and behavior programs with the Animal Humane Society in Golden Valley, Minnesota. “It’s very shocking to see a dog that was previously sweet and wonderful turn and give a very uninhibited bite to the Assess-a-Hand. That is a somber moment for anyone who sees it, and as dramatic as videotape can be, it doesn’t compare to seeing it in person. That often wipes out any objections a particular kennel person may have to euthanizing a particular dog. It’s hard to imagine a dog like that going home with somebody and having to live with that.”

On the other hand, stressing the positive aspects of evaluations is imperative to gaining greater understanding of the motivations behind the program. When Janet Smith educates people about the process, she starts with gentle, sociable, adoptable dogs. “If you present the behavior assessment as a tool used to euthanize dogs, you’ll immediately see the walls go up—fears, defensiveness,” she says. “That’s not what a test is designed to do. ...You need to show a range of behavior, not failure after failure.”

If the board of directors or other decision-makers seem ambivalent about evaluations, make it a priority to clue them in on the process through a similar sort of show-and-tell. The Potter League for Animals in Rhode Island recently held a focus discussion to help board members learn more about the philosophical and practical aspects of behavior evaluations.

“We demonstrated the test on a great, very stable, no-problem dog,” says executive director Christie Smith. “Then we showed videos of tests [that revealed] very unadoptable dogs. Then we talked about the ‘gray areas’—the dogs that ... the staff will always struggle with decisions about.”

Before the meeting, shelter staff had prepared board members for the discussion by sending them behavior evaluation materials. For similar presentations to other shelter boards, Smith recommends bringing comparison data for the years before behavior evaluations were introduced and the years following implementation—including statistics for euthanasia, adoption, returns, and any other relevant areas.

When staff or board members are worried that the evaluation system will lack flexibility, some shelters set up a behavior modification program that addresses the needs of animals who are not yet adoptable but may become so with a little help and training. “Then you design your criteria for the Behavior Special Needs animals—what animals qualify for that program,” says Janet Smith. “Have your checks and balances in place there. At our shelter, an individual can propose that an animal be placed in this program; the application is then approved by a behavior staff person, the shelter manager, and the vet. The program does not guarantee an animal will be made available for adoption, but it does guarantee rehabilitation will be attempted.”

Deciding whether to set up such a program, of course, involves weighing the desire to attempt behavior modification or rehabilitation for one dog against the level of available resources, knowledge, and time to complete the job effectively. “Do we attempt to rehab and place one aggressive dog or offer hundreds of free cat spay/neuters?” says Janet Smith. “Rehab one dog or put another Training Wheels [outreach] van on the streets for a year? Rehab one dog or spend the money to put on 100 bite-prevention programs in elementary schools? These are the very real decisions we have to make each day—which decisions in the long run ultimately save more lives?”

HOW CAN YOU MAKE USE OF THE RESULTS?

The pencils are down, the check marks made, the assessments completed. Now what should be done with the results? And how can a shelter help animals post-evaluation?

The answer depends in part on the resources available to the organization. While some evaluations yield definitive answers, there will always be dogs who fall somewhere between clearly adoptable and clearly not adoptable—those who, given time and nurturing, could grow into family-ready pets. Sometimes that extra time and effort involves foster care programs or in-house etiquette lessons for friendly but untrained dogs; in other situations it may entail careful placement with an adopter who’s well aware of the difficult project she’s taking on.

But if resources are limited, shelters with evaluation programs can still help those animals who breeze through the process by providing creature comforts and socialization to dogs whose temperaments may otherwise deteriorate in the multiple-animal environment. And with adequate staffing, behavior training can even be tailored to address any special needs identified during the evaluation process.

At the Dane County Humane Society in Madison,Wisconsin, behavior assistants work with dogs both before and after evaluations, says animal behavior coordinator Chelse Wieland. The shelter also provides a “manners class” so dog walkers can learn to discourage unwanted behaviors such as jumping and mouthing and encourage desirable behaviors such as sitting and staying. These simple efforts make a difference to potential adopters and, in turn, boost dogs’ chances for finding a lasting match.

Even routine interactions with animals provide opportunities to gain new knowledge that can supplement the behavior evaluation records kept for each animal: “As your volunteers and staff work with dogs, have them record daily observations in a computer or handwritten log,” says a fact sheet called “Saving Dogs in Shelters,” produced by the Tompkins County SPCA in New York. “Note things like activity level, ability to follow simple commands, favorite games or toys, interaction with other dogs, and any progress made or problems noticed. This information comes in handy for the next socializer and is particularly helpful when matching the dog with a new adopter.”

Recording initial evaluation results and ongoing progress reports on kennel cards and then in more detail in the computer helps staff of the Dumb Friends League in Denver share information among themselves about a dog’s adoptability and training needs. “So, for example, if a dog failed the food possession test, the kennel card would note, ‘Euthanized for observed aggression,’ and then the note in the computer might read, ‘Dog bit Assess-a-Hand during food possession test,’ ” says animal behavior manager Donna Mlinek. “On an adoptable animal, we would enter information into the computer record, such as, ‘Dog was mouthy and jumped up on enthusiastic play test, so not recommended for families with children under age six.’ We also use these results to decide if a dog should go into our ‘Headstart’ program or socialization program.”

Creating the Personality Profile

Beyond identifying which dogs are suitable for adoption and which ones are adoptable pending further training, a thorough evaluation and accurately recorded results will enable counselors to better match adopters with dogs who fit their lifestyles.

And they allow staff to place more than just the vital stats on kennel cards. At the Capital Area Humane Society, kennel card descriptions include essential behavior information for potential adopters, such as whether the dog tends to have a strong environment focus or people focus; what his exercise needs might be; whether he is confident and bouncy or shy and retreating; and whether his play style is gentle or rough. The cards also detail housetraining and crate-training status and list anything the dog has learned while at the shelter.

So often, though, potential adopters who read these cards may think they know what they want but have little basis for their decisions. To try to provide them with a little guidance, the Kansas Humane Society recently began including in its assessment process a series of activities designed to further reveal the dogs’ personality traits. Called Matchmaker, the extended evaluation results in classification of dogs by color: Those with purple cage cards tend to be more docile, whereas those with bright green cards are more active. At the same time, potential adopters also go through a behavior evaluation of sorts when they complete a lifestyle questionnaire and explain their expectations for a pet. They, too, receive a color-coded visitor’s pass and are urged to select animals in the same color scheme.

Personality profiling can also help shelter staff and volunteers work more effectively with animals. Some shelters use colored kennel cards to designate which dogs are easier to handle and which ones are more difficult. “I remember being a new volunteer and simply hating walking a new dog,” says Willow Foster, kennel supervisor for the Anderson Animal Shelter in South Elgin, Illinois. “I was never really sure what I was getting into. This color-coding system helps address that. It helps new volunteers feel comfortable.”

A color-coding system at the Capital Area Humane Society helps staff and volunteers steer adopters toward the animals most likely to fit in with their families. “[Volunteers and staff] can see patrons come in on a busy Saturday with five small children in tow and suggest they should look at and consider dogs with green-colored kennel cards,” says behavior program manager Janet Smith. “Additionally, we can make rules [or offer] strong suggestions to volunteers—for example, a junior or new volunteer should not take out dogs with pink kennel cards.”

Telling It Like It Is

There’s a difference between describing circumstantial histories and making declarative statements on kennel cards. Instead of telling adopters that this dog is “great with kids,” shelter staff may want to write that he “has a history of living with children.”

Behavior evaluations shouldn’t be kept secret, even if they reveal underlying problems an adopter may be afraid to take on. It’s important to tell the public the motivations behind evaluations and to share with potential adopters the assessment results—the good, the bad, and the ugly. “People seem to trust us,” says executive director Christie Smith of the Potter League for Animals in Rhode Island. “They cite situations where other shelters and rescues haven’t been honest with them and understand that we will be honest. I think trust is the most critical part of an organization’s reputation, so we are always honest.”

Most likely you’ll find that potential adopters welcome the news with open arms. “We have started to have people call and say they heard we do temperament testing and want to adopt from us,” says Becky Howard, customer services supervisor with the Jacksonville Humane Society in Florida. “We are starting to see this listing on our applications as a reason for adopting from us.”

How a shelter relays information about evaluation results can positively or negatively influence how the evaluation process is perceived. “Do not use kennel-speak on the cage card or other sources used to educate potential adopters,” says the Capital Area Humane Society’s Janet Smith. A potential adopter probably will not know what “demonstrates intense play/prey drive” means—but is likely to understand “sometimes plays hard and takes a while to calm down after play.”

Sometimes language can make all the difference—not only in promoting understanding but also in preventing liability risks. As Mlinek points out, there’s a difference between describing circumstantial histories and making declarative statements. “We don’t make any claims based on our evaluations,” she says. “We are careful with language even when it comes to history: We do not say, ‘This dog is great with kids.’ Instead [we say], ‘This dog has a history of living with children.’ We would write ‘Dog did not show aggression toward three dogs we introduced him to,’ not ‘Dog is not dog-aggressive.’ ”

For added protection, it’s a good idea to have an attorney draft an adoption clause specifying that the shelter cannot guarantee the health and temperament of any animal. Adopters at the Sacramento SPCA sign a behavior/health waiver indicating that they understand the behavior evaluation provides no guarantees, says behavior specialist Val Masters. Counselors also ask adopters to read a list of behavior-related concerns particular to the animal they’ve chosen; adopters then sign a statement saying they understand the problems and want to adopt the dog anyway.

For some adopters, there just may not be appropriately matched dogs available for adoption—however willing or qualified the would-be caregivers may be.

“We struggle with finding dogs that are ‘child-proof,’ ” says the Potter League’s Christie Smith. “We are terribly frustrated that we can’t be accommodating to the families in our community. Too often I find people heading to pet stores or breeders because we can’t meet their needs and they are not prepared to wait until a ‘kid dog’ comes in. The staff is not going to cave in to a family’s wishes and send it home with a dog that will be inappropriate.”

Unfortunately, even if your shelter is responsible, any dog can bite and any shelter can be sued. But evaluations and record-keeping can provide protection. “Liability is one reason why we do evaluations,” says Lisa Lawrence, adoptions coordinator for the Animal Welfare League of Arlington, Virginia. “We not only have a responsibility to the animals, but also to provide safe animals to the public. All possible situations cannot be tested for; it’s just not possible. If something unexpected happens after an animal goes home, we have the documentation to say that the dog exhibited no signs of that behavior here.”

Ignoring the Risks

Those shelters that do cave in to demand and send “iffy” dogs home with vulnerable families may get a number to add to their adoption statistics. But the number that best demonstrates the need for honest assessments starts with the number one: One “iffy” dog placed without an evaluation, one child mauled, one family torn apart, one lawsuit, one reputation tarnished, one shelter that can no longer provide the same protection for its animals and services for its community.

“Failing to temperament-test a dog before he is adopted out is like handing a gun to the new owners, not knowing if the gun is loaded or cocked, and hoping they go to gun school for training,” says Sue Sternberg, creator of the Assess-a-Pet evaluation and owner of Rondout Valley Animals for Adoption in Accord, New York.

That point was made painfully clear a few months ago, when a New Jersey woman was mauled to death by the Doberman pinscher she had adopted 10 days earlier from a shelter. Originally surrendered to the shelter after biting his owner, who then requested euthanasia, the dog stayed in the shelter for about three months before going home with his last human companion.

Most shelter professionals will agree that a dog surrendered for attacking his owner should never be placed back into the community. But others will look for blame elsewhere: “She should have been more careful,” “The dog should have been sent to a Doberman placement group,” “The shelter should have worked harder to modify his behavior.” But ultimately a woman was killed and a shelter’s ability to help both animals and people severely damaged. And the tragedy is that all along, there existed powerful tools that could have helped prevent the death: responsible adoption policies and a thorough behavior evaluation process.

ASSESSING THE ASSESSMENTS

Many critics argue that shelters can’t prove the reliability and predictability of their behavior evaluations. It’s a point well taken: How do you know whether that “mostly nice but other-dog-phobic” shepherd mix you adopted out is doing well in his new home? And what about that cute Lab who spent weeks in a behavior modification program to correct some of his “mouthy and jumpy” behavior? His behavior was much improved when he was finally adopted, but how is he now, six months or a year later?

To determine whether an evaluation program is any more effective than the cursory eyeballing method of the olden days, shelters performing assessments should keep and analyze data related to: ● return rates in general; ● numbers of dogs returned for aggressive behavior; ● severity of injuries to humans or other animals caused by returned animals; ● reductions in length of stay for sheltered animals; ● ease of housing and adopting evaluated animals; ● euthanasia rates for space, health, and quality-of-life issues; ● effect of evaluations on adoption placements; and ● adopters’ opinions about the success of the adoption.

“Demonstrate, investigate, look at [the] documentation,” says Janet Smith of the Capital Area Humane Society. “What kind of correlations do you see? For example, ‘Dogs which test X, Y, Z are returned less frequently than dogs which test A, B, C. Dogs which test J, K, L, have been returned for biting X number of times.’ Follow the success of adoption counselors and the matches they make: ‘X percentage of dogs adopted by Y counselors are returned.’ Document what happens in regards to who did a behavior assessment: ‘X percentage of dogs evaluated by Y are returned for aggression or biting or whatever.’ ”

Keeping records is key to analyzing and improving your behavior evaluation program. “Right after I started here, there were dogs who passed the temperament test, were adopted out, and then returned for aggressive behavior,” says Smith. “Now we save our tests, make notes in our Chameleon software system, and we even videotape temperament tests. So when dogs are returned, I review the videotape, the forms, the notes in the computer—and then discuss them with my staff, adoption counselors, and other key staff. When I review these records, I usually find what went wrong when we initially evaluated the dog.”

And even if they don’t return their dog or call your shelter with a litany of grievances, adopters may still experience problems. “Just because dogs don’t get returned to your shelter doesn’t mean adopters aren’t challenged by their companion’s behavior,” says Emily Weiss, PhD, an animal behaviorist and consultant to the Kansas Humane Society.

Follow-up calls can not only help adopters but also improve the strength of your program. After all, if assessments are designed to find out what a dog may be like in a home, with adopters, how can you truly know whether your program works unless you call those adopters? Providing a support system for adoptees and their new families will also help prevent problems in the home from spiraling out of control. When the dog and adopter have made a commitment to each other, let them know their relationship with the shelter isn’t over and that you’re there to help them through the transitions—even and especially the rough ones. “They shouldn’t feel that the shelter will blame them if they’re having a problem with the dog,” says Sternberg. “You want them to feel they can come to you with problems.”

By simply asking a few questions, you can also glean answers and compare them with the temperament evaluation form to determine the effectiveness of your organization’s assessment program. If you’re worried that staff or volunteers may end up spending too much time on individual calls, train them to avoid storytelling conversations in favor of doing “just the facts, ma’am” phone interviewing, recommends the San Francisco SPCA’s Jean Donaldson. Sample questions might include: Do you still have the dog? How are things going with your new pet? Do you have any questions regarding his behavior? Are you able to go near his food and take things away from him? How does he react when you have company? How does he react when a stranger approaches? How does he react to other dogs? Has he bitten or growled at anybody? Rate your satisfaction with your dog and with your adoption on a scale of 1 to 10.

Tracking this information, comparing it with your evaluation records, and keeping track of return numbers may seem time-consuming initially, but in the end, anything that helps you make safer and more lasting animal placements will save time, money, and heartbreak—while helping you meet your mission of making the world a more humane place for both people and their pets.