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The Dog Breeds with the Greatest Propensity to be Obedience Trained

The chart below, created by Benjamin and Lynette Hart, offers a rank-ordering of dog breeds by the ease with which they can be obedience trained. The list was taken from their wonderful little book The Perfect Puppy: How to Choose Your Dog by Its Behavior. Unfortunately, The Perfect Puppy is currently out of print.

All dogs can learn and all dogs can develop obedience skills. However, some breeds have a strong propensity to develop skills, while others respond only to a consistent, persistent effort by someone who knows how to go about it. This chart, then, lists many of the major dog breeds by the ease with which they can be obedience trained.

Please note that, within each of the ten groups, all of the breeds listed in that group are about equally trainable. Also, in all breeds, the females tend to be somewhat easier to obedience train than the males.

Hart's Rank Ordering of Dog Breeds by their Propensity to be Obedience Trained.
Taken from The Perfect Puppy.

#1 Rating: The most difficult to train
Here at the top of the chart are listed
the breeds that are the most difficult to train.
As you move toward the bottom of the list, each
successive group is easier to obedience train
than was the group before.
Chow Chow
Fox Terrier
Afghan Hound
Bulldog
Basset Hound
Beagle
#2 Rating West Highland White Terrier
Chihuahua
Pug
Pomeranian
Pekingese
#3 Rating Scottish Terrier
Yorkshire Terrier
Saint Benard
Old English Sheepdog
Irish Setter
Dachshund
#4 Rating Samoyed
Lhasa Apso
Cairn Terrier
Weimaraner
Airedale Terrier
#5 Rating Maltese
Bloodhound
Silky Terrier
Siberian Husky
Boston Terrier
Alaskan Malamute
#6 Rating Dalmatian
Boxer
Great Dane
Shih Tzu
Newfoundland
German Shorthaired Pointer
#7 Rating Norwegian Elkhound
Cocker Spaniel
Bichon Frise
Miniature Schanauzer
Rottweiler
#8 Rating Vizsla
Brittany Spaniel
Akita
Welsh Corgi
Toy Poodle
Keeshond
#9 Rating Labrador Retriever
Chesapeake Bay Retriever
Collie
Golden Retriever
English Springer Spaniel
#10 Rating - The easiest breeds to obedience train
Listed here at the bottom of the chart are
the breeds that are the easiest to
obedience train
.
Miniature Poodle
Border Collie
German Shepherd
Standard Poodle
Shetland Sheepdog
Doberman Pinscher
Australian Shepherd


This page is part of the More Information section of New Animal Control.Org