Unwanted behavior is the leading cause of death among privately owned dogs under three years of age. It’s also a major reason why dogs are relinquished to shelters across the world. The reporting of a dog’s behavior by a guardian at the time of relinquishment is typically taken with a grain of salt. There’s an assumption among shelter staff that bias may come into play from a guardian who wants to give their dog the best chance of finding a new home. Do most people who surrender their dog to a shelter mislead the staff into believing their dog is better behaved than they really are? This research study suggests otherwise.

The researchers investigated the validity of screening for behavior problems in dogs being surrendered to a shelter by their guardian. They wanted to test out the screening method used and whether promised confidentiality would reveal differences in the reliability of the behavior information reported. Guardians were invited to participate in the study by shelter staff at the time of relinquishment.

The study used two different screening methods. The first method was to ask the guardian directly if their dog had any behavioral issues. Options for responding included “no problems,” “only minor problems,” “moderate problems,” and “serious problems.” The second screening method followed the first and used a shorter version of the Canine Behavioral Assessment and Research Questionnaire (C-BARQ). This ‘mini C-BARQ’ asked the guardian how their dog responded in different situations, such as being approached by a stranger or another dog. Some participants were informed that their answers were confidential, while others were told that their information would be shared with shelter staff. A further subset wasn’t informed either way about confidentiality. In total, there were 427 participants from three different shelters across the United States.

To create a control group, the researchers selected another 427 dog guardians who had filled out the full version of the C-BARQ as part of a separate, ongoing voluntary study unrelated to relinquishment. As with the guardians above, these participants had to have had their dog for at least two months. Other variables that were matched between the two groups were the dog’s sex, breed, and original source. To ensure consistency of screening methods, dog guardians in the control group were also asked a direct question about their dog’s behavioral issues prior to completing the C-BARQ.

The results showed that confidentiality made no impact on the answers given. This means that guardians didn’t sugarcoat their dog’s behavior when they thought it would be shared with shelter staff. Yet there was still an apparent disconnect between self-reporting of behavior issues and the behavior issues uncovered by the mini C-BARQ. Over two-thirds (69%) of relinquishing guardians reported that their dog had no behavioral issues at all. However, the results of the mini C-BARQ revealed that their dogs scored higher on specific behavior issues, including excitability, energy, training difficulty, owner-directed aggression, stranger-directed fear and aggression, dog-directed aggression, touch sensitivity, and separation issues, compared to dogs in the control group. In contrast, roughly two-thirds (65.5%) of guardians not relinquishing their dog — those in the control group — reported experiencing some degree of behavior problems. Despite this, their dogs scored lower than relinquished dogs on the specific behavioral issues, except for attachment/attention-seeking and chasing.

To explain this discrepancy, the researchers propose that guardians relinquishing their dogs might not recognize a behavior as a problem and instead find that their dog’s behavior is normal. This, in turn, could mean that they’re less likely to seek out dog training and other behavior support. Previous studies have shown that guardians who forgo puppy classes are less likely to see behaviors like leash-pulling or separation anxiety as a problem. At the same time, guardians who haven’t done obedience training with their dogs are at greater risk of surrendering them. However, the researchers also note that guardians may face financial and other barriers to access behavioral resources like these.

There are several limitations to the study, with a significant one being the way participants were recruited. The control group was made up of dog guardians who voluntarily filled out the C-BARQ on their own. This means that they potentially had an above-average interest in animal behavior and might not be representative of dog guardians more generally. Similarly, guardians who agreed to participate at the time of relinquishment might not be representative of all relinquishing guardians.

From this research, it’s clear that it’s important for shelter staff to ask the right questions when collecting a behavioral history to ensure accuracy and realistic expectations of the dog in the future. The researchers encourage shelters to use a standardized assessment tool like the mini C-BARQ for this purpose. This study also highlights the need for shelters to develop intake diversion programs and interventions that increase behavioral resources for people with limited access to them. This may help prevent dog behavior problems, shelter relinquishment, and euthanasia of young adult dogs.