We Gave 2 Dogs a Cognition Test, and This Is What Happened

Updated on Jan 7, 2017 at 1:15 PM

POPSUGAR Photography | Rebecca Brown

When we heard about a cognition test for dogs, we really had no idea what to expect. But Dr. Brian Hare, cofounder of Dognition and director of the Duke Canine Cognition Center, assured us that he had created this entire cognition test to learn more about your dog than you ever thought possible.

Dognition is an online tool with several tests to analyze all your dog's behaviors. They're fun little science-based games that, beyond telling you about your dog, allow for a bonding experience between the two of you. Because the test is fairly lengthy, it allows for that initial bonding experience, but then once you get the results, you'll be able to understand your dog so much better. "Sometimes dogs don't listen to a command and we don't know why," Hare said when he walked me through the process. "But not all dogs learn things the same way, so maybe that dog isn't understanding your command how you're giving it."

We had two dog owners in our office try this set of tests on their dogs to see what it was really like, and both of them said that above everything else, they enjoyed the time they spent with their dogs. Keep reading to see how the tests went for them, and then try Dognition for yourself for free, courtesy of Purina Pro Plan Bright Mind.

Fleetwood

Rebecca Brown, brand content editor for Fashion and Beauty, gave the cognition test to her Golden Retriever, Fleetwood.

Regarding Fleetwood's empathy test, she said, "I thought this was really interesting. Dog eye contact is something people talk a lot about (some dogs look away when you look at them). I felt really connected to Fleet during the eye contact tests, so I was happy to read the results, which scaled high."

"The Cunning game gave us a result that was dead in the center. This portion was very frustrating for us as our dog does not wait when she hears treats. Each time we ran a test under the Cunning category, it felt like a failure. Fleet sprinted for the treat regardless of what the task was."

Rebecca didn't quite finish the full test with her dog, because unsurprisingly, "It's physically exhausting to hold the dog back while the other person has treats (it's like fighting a bear)." She also noted that the test is very long to complete, but she looks forward to the full evaluation once they finish it.

Sammy

Beauty editor Emily Orofino tried the Dognition test with her family's 9-year-old Maltese, Sammy.

Of Sammy and the test, she said, "I didn't know what to expect when starting this endeavor with Sammy. We adopted him about a year ago, and he came with a host of neuroses and severe separation anxiety (and an excellent pint-sized wardrobe). He's very loving and cuddly, but otherwise can be difficult. He flat-out ignores a lot of commands and can be easily distracted, so I was worried about him being a good participant. Sammy is also an extremely picky eater and has been known to refuse treats, which was another concerning characteristic."

Despite all that, she gave the test a go and was pleasantly surprised with the results: "However, Sammy thrived throughout the process. Not only did he willingly engage in the games, but he also seemed to be having a lot of fun! I don't often have many opportunities to truly play with him, so I truly enjoyed it and felt like we were bonding more as we completed each experiment."

The results she ended up with were far more extensive than she expected. She said she felt they were all accurate to what she expected, based on what she knows of Sammy. "The final score said that he was a 'Protodog,' which means that he is close in nature to the early canine ancestors with strong social skills. While I was offended by this declaration at first (as it means he is not good at independent problem solving), I realized that it fits Sammy to a T. All he wants in life is to be closely bonded to (and preferably on the lap of) his humans. Knowing that this is an innate need of his and not just him being 'difficult' has made me more considerate of his feelings. This information will undoubtedly strengthen our relationship."