The First-Day Daycare Temperament Test — What to Test, What Disqualifies

The temperament test is the single most important client interaction in daycare. Get it right and you protect every other dog on your floor. Get it wrong and the next bite is on you.

The Half-Day Evaluation

Required for every new daycare dog: a half-day evaluation, no full days until the eval is passed. Charge for it (typically $20-30, less than a full day) so the dog isn’t treated as "free" by either side. The half-day length is enough to see how the dog handles arrival stress, mid-day energy, and the wind-down without overwhelming them on day one.

What You’re Actually Testing

• Resource guarding: drop a few toys; observe.
• Reaction to other dogs: introduce slowly, watch body language.
• Reaction to humans: handler approach, leash handling, kennel introduction.
• Recovery from arousal: short play, then call out, see how quickly they settle.
• Body awareness: can they navigate around smaller dogs without trampling?

The Disqualifiers

Non-negotiable disqualifiers: any bite (even inhibited), severe resource guarding that doesn’t respond to handler intervention, fear-based snapping at humans, hyper-fixated stalking of other dogs, inability to settle after 30 minutes of low-stimulation. Borderline cases get a second eval after 30 days of training; clear disqualifiers get a respectful no.

The dog you "give a chance" because the owner is so nice is the dog who escalates in week three.

Documentation

Every eval gets a written assessment in the dog’s profile: temperament tags (size/temperament/energy from our play group system), specific behaviors observed, recommended group, special handling notes. The next staffer to handle the dog should be able to read the assessment and know what to expect.

The Parent Conversation

Pickup script for a successful eval: "He did great today. We’re going to put him in our medium-energy group. Want to book his first regular day?" Pickup script for a failed eval: "We had a great day with him, but I noticed [specific behavior] that tells me daycare may not be the right environment right now. Here’s what I’d suggest [specific path forward — training, smaller setting, etc.]." Specific, kind, never apologetic for the decision.

Re-Testing After Time Off

Any dog who hasn’t been to daycare in 90+ days gets re-tested at half-day length. Behavior changes. New homes change. New dogs in the household change everything. The re-test is a small operational cost that catches the changes before they become problems.

Pair the temperament test with strict headcount tracking and disciplined play group sorting.

Animal Friends OS supports per-dog temperament profiles, eval workflows, and re-test reminders at 90 days. See daycare software.