Predicting adult temperament

Torch

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#1
Can you predict adult temperament? At what age can you start to feel that temperament is 'set'?

I'm very curious about others' opinions on this. Rhys is almost 6 months old and I am very, very happy with his temperament. He's very correct temperamentally for an Amstaff and I love pretty much everything about his personality.

I expect some maturity and changes as he grows, but my personal opinion is that his temperament is pretty well 'set'.

He's been a relatively easy puppy and very confident and outgoing. He comes from a line of dogs much the same as him. Barring any traumatic experience or illness, I expect him to remain this way into adulthood.

Thoughts?
 

AdrianneIsabel

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#2
The nerves, how naturally steady and resilient they are, will be present from puppyhood. You can build trust and drive which can hide worry but over all he is what he is, like most pups. That being said some breeds, lines, and individuals mature slowly and go through odd phases as mid to late teens before evening back out again. Basically don't panic if he starts acting weird, just keep at it and don't write anything in stone.
 

krissy

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#4
I think dogs change A LOT over time... but stay the same. Let me explain....

We have had Summit for 3 years now. We got him when he was 5.5 as a return to the adoption group (owner illness). He was a very easy dog. And he still is today. He is well mannered. Has never pulled on leash, never counter surfed, never barked excessively, never really had separation anxiety, never touched things that aren't his. And that all holds true. His underlying personality is what it is and will probably never change. However, lots of little changes and evolution have happened over the years. It probably took about 6 months before we started to see his goofy side. It was close to a year before he would REALLY get excited abut us coming home or wanting to "play" with us. He'll come up to us when we're watching t.v. and just stand there and stare at us... then the tail starts wagging and he gets this ridiculous look on his face... then he barks at us! And only just recently he started playing tug and let me teach him to put his front feet up on my shoulders. There's all kinds of little quirks that just keep surfacing. I'm sure more will happen. But under that all is still my good boy.

Kili is not mature yet but base temperament seems the same. She loves everyone but can sometimes be cautious about a new dog (but I think that's just smart) before she really explodes into play. She's sweet and doesn't have a mean streak in her but she is not overly affectionate or cuddly. She's rather independent and can be quite distracted and unfocused. She went through a couple of really brutal fear phases and I'm just praying we won't see another one before she turns two. Greyhounds don't mature mentally until about 3 though, so I'm hoping she will become more focused and disciplined in the coming months and years. Sometimes I wish she was snugglier, but overall her personality is very even and sweet so I can't complain. Also greyhounds are a little pointy for cuddling anyway.
 

JacksonsMom

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#5
It's hard for me to tell how much of Jackson is because of nature or nurture.

His base personality has stayed the same. He's always been somewhat high maintenance, but also easy at the same time. Energy and drive but not 'hyper'. He's always been my go-anywhere, try anything dog and I know he will behave and/or enjoy it. He's always been very trainable, and into learning, and still thrives on trick training/clicker/etc. He's never been a big cuddler, never been big on being touched by strangers, never liked being separated from me in any way (i.e. gates, fences, crates, etc). Always been very cautious and somewhat shy (loud noises like fireworks, guns, shut him down) but he is so confident in other situations.

That all is still the same. The only things that have changed are he is a bit less dog tolerant (not dog aggressive or reactive in any way, but he won't put up with rough dogs anymore without snarking). He actually got better with strangers as he aged. He's still shy and would prefer someone he doesn't know NOT pet him, but if I say 'go say hi' he will. He's gotten a bit sweeter, he maybe enjoys some kind of cuddling a little more as he's aged.

But I socialized him a lot as a pup, he was used to traveling a lot of places, and meeting new dogs and people, and we did training a lot, and I was with him a lot, etc. I think had I not done anything much with him as a pup, he would be a very nippy, shy, fearful dog to be honest. So it's hard for me to say how much is because of just his personality or the way that I raised him. There's a few things I'd change about him, if I could, but overall he's really just a "good dog".
 

Sit Stay

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#6
I am on my phone so not able to type up anything extravagant, but here's a short form of things that were evident in Quinn as a young puppy, and still apparent today (at 3 years old). Perhaps they'll give you an idea!

Evident as a puppy, have not changed today:
- Confidence
- Great nerves
- Resilient - bounces back instantly after being startled
- People oriented
- Not overly soft or biddable
- Higher drive but good off switch
- Rule oriented/enforcing
- Serious and often calm - she was an old soul
- Trustworthy in the house and off leash
- Herding instinct

Things that have changed or developed since:
- More toy drive
- More hunting drive
- Guardian traits have become apparent
- Still serious in most circumstances, but is able to lighten up more
- More cuddly
- More confident on stock (not surprising, it came with both maturity and experience)
 

Torch

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#7
The nerves, how naturally steady and resilient they are, will be present from puppyhood. You can build trust and drive which can hide worry but over all he is what he is, like most pups. That being said some breeds, lines, and individuals mature slowly and go through odd phases as mid to late teens before evening back out again. Basically don't panic if he starts acting weird, just keep at it and don't write anything in stone.
It's really been fascinating to see this in my own pup.

Everyone's responses are awesome! It's something I'm dead curious about and like reading more about it.
 

AmandaNola

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#8
I'm going to do it in the same style as SitStay did. Nola (now 3 years old) has changed a good bit since I got her, but most of her basic personality traits are the same as when I met her at 6 weeks and brought her home at 8. I'd almost say the changes in her were mostly just fine tuning her basic traits.

She's always been:
- Extremely bossy
- Very pushy
- Confident
- Quick to correct other dogs
- Extremely handler focused (recall training was a snap)
- Very food motivated
- High drive
- Aloof to strangers
- A quick learner
- Whip smart
- A troublemaker/mischievous
- Extremely emotionally intelligent
- Had a very long attention span
- Solid tempered
- Not "soft"
- Vocal
- Extremely protective

She's also always been very "adult" in her behaviors and tendencies; her puppyhood was a breeze and her focus as a baby was almost frightening.

What's changed:
- Higher toy drive (she had almost none as a puppy)
- Less tolerant of other dogs
- More into being cuddly and she now accepts touch as a reward for minor things (no way in hell would she do that before her second birthday)
- She's slightly more receptive of strangers
- She now has an off switch, although it takes a lot to find it :p
 

Elrohwen

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#9
Watson is only 15 months, so I'm still waiting to see how he will turn out.

In general, his personality has been the same since he was 9 weeks old. He has always been confident and outgoing, willing to meet any people or dogs we passed on walks. He's still very puppy-like and hasn't really matured since 9 months old, so I'm most curious to see if he loses that with maturity. Welsh are slow to mature, but generally not perpetual puppies (they tend to be calm and laid back adults) so we'll see how he is at 3 years old.

From day one he was sweet, cuddly, active, and excited to learn. He's always been a bit stubborn and persistent, wanting to have his own way about things. He has always been pretty handler hard, but he is soft with other dogs and a complete push over.

He didn't develop his hunting instinct until about 5 months, so that's something that changed with time. Now he's an intense hunter and always following scent trails, but he didn't use his nose much as a young puppy.

He seems to be going through a bit of a fear period (his only one so far) and will bark at things that seem out of place on walks (a bike sitting alone, balloons in the woods). I'm also curious to see if he grows out of this, because he was never spooky about things until the last month or two. It's still rare, and the second time he sees the scary object he usually doesn't care, but I don't want to it to become a permanent part of his personality.
 

Gypsydals

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#10
I don't know, Ivan is well Ivan. He is like two different dogs stuck in the same body. Most times he acts like a stupid, immature puppy. Yet at other times the mature guardian/watch dog emerges. Outside of the home he is generally quite happy to meet people, with the exception of little kids. At home he is a big a$$. Who wants no one here outside of the 3 of us. But I know I've made some mistakes with Ivan, and still not sure how to correct them or even if I can given his age.

Peewee has generally stayed the same. He is super layed back and an attention *****. Loves everyone, at home or out and about. Problem is he scares most people. Something about a big black hairy dog. The prey drive is still there and will always be there. He as a watch dog well its just not there.

Chloe as she matured, didn't give a rats butt about other people. She wasn't aggressive or anything, she just ignored you completely. She wouldn't take food from strangers or even people she knew (like at the vets office).

Totally hoping that the boys will cancel each other out with the next one. LOL
 

HayleyMarie

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#11
Teagan pretty much stayed the same. Other than she got a lot bossier, less people and dog tolerant. She is still as confident, and playful as she was as a puppy. Her prey drive did grow as she matured though. As a pup she played a lot with small rodents. The whole catch, injure, let go again, wash, rinse, repeat.

Now she just grabs and shakes and they die. She is all business now.

I predict Panzer will stay the same, although he is going to mature up a lot and get a lot more serious. His people and dog tolerances will probably change. He will get more protective and alert. He might go through a few small fear stages, which is normal with the breed. Boerboels are a very slow maturing breed.
 

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