Hovawarts and Temperament

Each breed has a "desired" mental profile, which is closely tied to the job the dog originally was bred to perform.
When you compare the "desired" profile of the Hovawart with other breeds you'll notice how looks can deceive, and while they maybe look a lot like Retrievers, their desired temperament is almost identical to that of Rottweilers, Malinois and alike.

There are big differences between countries and breeders as the "desired" profile is not as clearly defined by the FCI as the exterior characteristics. The official Hovawart standard which you can find on almost any website about Hovawarts, mentions the desired temperament in just one paragraph:

Recognized working dog with versatile usage. Kind and even disposition. Has protective instinct, fighting instinct, self-confidence and ability to take stress; of medium temperament; combined with a very good nose. His balanced body proportions and special devotion to his family make him an outstanding companion, watch, guard, tracking and rescue-dog.

as well as the disqualifying charecteristics:

Aggressive, anxious, gun shy or lethargic

A very thin basis compared with the 4-page description of exterior characteristics. Hovawart Clubs attached to the International Hovawart Federation (IHF) do coordinate their efforts but it is still up to the individual Club how "desired" is defined. Of course breeders do differ as well, where some specifically breed for working dogs with the proper high drive, or for dogs that could fit in your average family.

courtesy of www.hovawartclub.nl

Most tests will have as subject contact ability, play- and prey drive. The ability to act in a social setting and to deal with stress, surprises, threats and defensive ability. The dog is tested without the owner and the aim is not to test anything that could be trained, but only how the dog was genetically dispositioned.

The test results help the breeder to select, but most Clubs encourage all their members to have their dogs tested, as that will give them insight in the entire population and into which way the Hovawart is evolving.

The Dutch Hovawart Club has taken a remarkable step in this, as they do not perform temperament tests anymore with the "desired" temperament as the aim, but only test if dogs can function as an "accepted" member of our - human - society. They claim that this will not change the working dog status of the Hovawart, "as it is embedded by many generations of breeding". As any type of selection would not affect that? Of course it will.

Their test, the Canine Good Citizen Test Plus, also partly involves the handler. So it is much more about testing all behavior, and not only what was genetically passed on from generation to generation.

Despite of all the differences in tests, the result of a temperament test is a treasure for people looking for a puppy (or adult dog), if you can look away from the "desired" profile and use the information to find a dog that fits with your needs and lifestyle:

1. It will show you the red flags. The test elements where the dog has responded with flight or aggression is an indicator for expected fear-based or aggressive behavior. Such a dog will require a lot of its parent and knowledge of how to deal with these dogs is a necessity.
2. Dogs that are engaged and willful in test elements are considered high drive individuals and they will require an active lifestyle and a lot of training for the dog to be able to spend it's energy. These are the Hovawarts that especially "need a job".
3. Depending on the specific test element, you will have a predictor of how behavior will probably evolve and if you could expect issues. Like dogs that score low on the "Contact" test will probably need help in approaching other humans. Or dogs that score high on "Prey drive" might evolve in dedicated cat hunters and car chasers!

In the next installment, we have a look at the result of Kenzo's temperament test as a puppy and how he has developed over time.