Nature/Genetics and Nurture/Environment:
Temperament and Behavior

"To compare the relative importance of the two factors [nature and nurture] separately is analogous to asking whether hydrogen or oxygen is more important in the makeup of water." - Steven R. Lindsay, Handbook of Applied Dog Behavior and Training, Volume One.

The "pit bull debate" is almost always played out as a polarized conflict between the "pit bull lovers" on one side, who claim that a dog's behavior is all about the way it's raised, and the "pit bull haters" on the other side, who claim that a dog's behavior is entirely dictated by genetics.

Neither viewpoint is correct.

Rather, a dog's behavior occurs due to a combination of both genetics and environment. This is also true of human beings, cats, horses, rats, and pretty much any other living being on the planet. It is this combination that makes each and every dog (or human, or any other living thing) a unique individual.

My purpose on this page is to assist the bewildered with some easy-to-follow analogies and explanations.
If you're looking for serious scientific research, I highly recommend the following books:
Genetics and the Social Behavior of the Dog by John Paul Scott and John L. Fuller
Handbook of Applied Dog Behavior and Training (Volumes 1-3) by Steven R. Lindsay

Genetics and Temperament

All living things are born with a set of genetic blueprints. These genes control physical appearance and general temperament.

"Oh ho!" shouts the pro-genetics crowd. "Temperament is biologically determined!" Yes, it is, but there seems to be a profound misunderstanding about the difference between temperament and behavior. So let's talk about temperament first.

What is temperament? I would like to use Steven R. Lindsay's well-researched, eloquently stated description of temperament: "Each individual—human or animal—is born with a definite tendency toward varying degrees of emotional reactivity in the direction of behavioral inhibition or excitability... Clearly, genetic factors predispose dogs to exhibit certain inevitable behavioral strengths or weaknesses." (Handbook of Applied Dog Behavior and Training, Volume 1)

The two things you should remember from Lindsay's definition are:

  1. Temperament is a trait possessed by an individual, not a group.
  2. Temperament is a tendency or predisposition but not a definitive action.

What this means can be boiled down rather simply: Temperament sets the stage but does not write the play. Temperament is a predisposition. A dog's genetics influence the possible behaviors which may be produced by the dog much the way a dial on an oven displays the possible temperatures the oven could be set at.

Genetics limits possible behaviors. For instance, I cannot teach a dog to sing opera because such a behavior is far beyond what its physical structure (genetics) allows, much as my kitchen oven's maximum temperature is 500 degrees, whether I like it or not. Genetics also makes possible certain behaviors. Dogs may not be able to sing opera, but they have a wide range of barks, yelps, and whines which they can employ to communicate.

So genetics sets the range of possible behaviors. Temperament, which is strongly influenced by genetics, sets up the liklihood that a particular behavior will be displayed in a particular circumstance.

Theoretically speaking, each dog breed should have a certain temperament. To that end, responsible breeders try to "breed for temperament," but it's not as simple as it sounds. Unlike coat and eye colors, temperament isn't dictated by one, two, or even a handful of genes. There's no "shy" gene. There's no "hyper" gene. Temperaments can vary significantly even between littermates. In the end, the idea that breeds have particular temperaments is mere wishful thinking on the part of humans. Even with a breed that is supposed to have a specific trait (i.e. Labs are supposed to be fond of water), there are still many individual dogs who do not meet the idealized temperament (i.e. Labs that are scared of the water). Temperaments that are described in breed standards are ideals, and the overwhelming majority of dogs fall short of the ideal.

"Biology and genetics define the limits of how and what an animal learns, whereas experience dictates the moment-to-moment direction of these behavioral changes." - Steven R. Lindsay

Environment and Behavior

Temperament is not a guarantee of behavior. You could say that a person is "quick-tempered," but if they existed in a vacuum, would they still be short-fused? If nothing exists, what could possibly cause such a person to be angry? Similarly, you could call a dog "friendly," but that dog is friendly because it has people and dogs to act friendly towards; if it had a friendly temperament but was the only living creature on the planet, what "friendly" behaviors could it exhibit?

For behavior to occur, environment must come into play. A dog barks at the mailman, a person cries at a movie, and a horse throws its rider. These behaviors are all prompted by things that occur in the environment. If the mailman hadn't walked by, the dog would be silent. If the movie was a comedy, the person would laugh instead of cry. Without the rider, the horse wouldn't buck. All living creatures' voluntary actions are prompted by an event in the environment.

Past environmental experiences may also influence current behavior. This is the fundamental basis by which canine trainers and behaviorists find their success. Because dogs, humans, and many other living creatures learn and adapt to their environment, behavior may change over time. A dog with a friendly temperament may still bite if it is abused enough. With proper training and treatment, a dog with a fearful temperament can learn not to cower at the sight of a broomstick. The temperament doesn't change, but behavior can.

As an example, my dog Felanie had a fearful temperament. She startled more easily than other dogs. She tended to be more fearful of events in her environment, and she had been this way ever since she was a little puppy (or so I've been told by people who knew her then).

From her previous owner, Fel learned fearful behaviors because he taunted and tormented her. Her fearful temperament was exaggerated by the environment she lived in and the coping behaviors she learned. She exhibited fear-based behaviors like slinking, darting,and warning barks.

When I got Felanie, I took her to obedience training and practiced confidence-building tricks and routines. My consistency, patience, and calm leadership encouraged Felanie to decrease her fear-based behaviors and let me worry about the world. After many months of this, Felanie's fear-based behaviors rarely manifested, and only in extremely stressful situations (i.e. thunderstorms).

However, until the day she passed away, I still considered Fel's temperament to be fearful. This means that, all things (including environment and training) being equal, Felanie was more likely to exhibit fear-based behavior than another dog. So I continued to be proactive in reducing Felanie's fear, and I understood that she needed special consideration when a scary event (i.e. a thunderstorm) was impending.

All dogs have similar quirks related to their temperament, from the dog with separation anxiety to the social butterfly who can't resist running across the street to play with the neighbor's kids. All responsible dog owners adopt a variety of management techniques to alter their dog's behavior and cope with their dog's temperament, whether they realize it or not.

Aggression - Today's battleground

"Used precisely, 'aggression' refers to fighting and means the act of initiating an attack." - John Paul Scott, Aggression

The "pit bull problem" seems to center around whether aggression is inherent or learned. Let's cut to the chase. Aggression is a behavior. A complex behavior, to be sure, but a behavior nevertheless. And what do we know about behavior? It is influenced by environment and experience.

John Paul Scott is a renowned scientific researcher who was interested in the interplay between genetics and behavior. He did experiments with mice to determine whether highly aggressive mice could be created through breeding.

"The experiments with mice show us that aggression has to be learned. Defensive fighting can be stimulated by the pain of an attack, but aggression, in the strict sense of an unprovoked attack, can only be produced by training... Heredity can enter into the picture only in such ways as lowering or raising the threshold of stimulation, or modifying the physical equipment for fighting... In considering hereditary effects, we must always remember that the environmental situation is also important..." - John Paul Scott, Aggression

Mr. Scott has done all the hard work for us. Aggression is a learned behavior.

"But," shouts a voice in the crowd, "I knew someone who had a dog that was never trained to be aggressive, but it still attacked someone without provocation. Scott is full of it!" This line of reasoning is fallacious because this person assumes that learning only occurs when a dog is formally trained by its owner. This idea is both naive and arrogant. Dogs learn life lessons from a variety of sources, including but not limited to the owner. For example, a dog's play, in which two dogs pounce, growl, and tussle in a playful manner, is actually ritualized aggression. When dogs play, they are practicing aggression.

Here's a scenario to illustrate how an "untrained" dog can nevertheless learn to be aggressive. (This is not an unusual scenario.)

Fluffy has a somewhat fearful temperament. He's timid and submissive around other dogs and people.

As a puppy, Fluffy is attacked by another puppy. Fluffy's owner lets the two puppies "work it out." Perhaps she chuckles because it's so "cute" to watch the two puppies "act so tough." Perhaps she thinks that Fluffy will gain confidence by "sticking up for himself." Or maybe she simply isn't paying attention. Whatever the case, Fluffy's owner doesn't intervene. So both puppies quarrel, and eventually Fluffy manages to get the other puppy to back down. In Fluffy's mind, the defensive aggression was successful because it brought about the desired result.

When Fluffy is a little older, his owner starts taking him to the dog park to socialize. But Fluffy is overwhelmed by all the other dogs and spends a lot of time trying to avoid them. One day, a much bigger dog starts playing with Fluffy, but he's too rough and Fluffy starts getting scared. He doesn't want to play anymore, but the big dog won't leave him alone. Fluffy becomes so frightened that he decides he must defend himself, so he snarls, barks, and snaps at the big dog. The big dog is surprised and runs off to find a nicer playmate. Once again, Fluffy's aggressive display was successful. Once again, Fluffy's owner wasn't paying attention.

Now Fluffy knows how to get other dogs to go away. He just has to growl, maybe snap his teeth, and they leave. It usually works. But one day a puppy comes over to play with him, and the puppy doesn't understand Fluffy's growl. The puppy keeps pouncing on him, biting his ears and tail, and making him nervous. Fluffy gets more and more anxious as his growls and snaps don't seem to be working. Fluffy decides to take it to the next level. He bites down on the puppy's face—hard. The puppy shrieks and struggles. People start shouting, and Fluffy's owner runs over. She is screaming and she starts hitting Fluffy. Fluffy becomes even more terrified at the sudden quantity of noise. He drops the puppy and cowers, trying to disappear into the ground. Fluffy's owner is furious and she interprets his frightened cowering as a sign that "he knew he did something wrong." But to Fluffy, the hard bite worked. The beastly little puppy went away, and in a few minutes he was safe and sound in his owner's car.

Fluffy's owner doesn't take him back to the dog park for several weeks, much to his relief. But finally she explains away Fluffy's attack on the puppy as some sort of fluke accident. Besides, she remembers, "he cowered because he felt guilty for biting the puppy. So he won't do it again." Off they go to the dog park.

Unfortunately, fearful Fluffy has learned that an actual bite is much more effective than mere growling. From the front seat of the car, he sees the other dogs at the park and his heart beats fast. He is nervous and anxious. He whines. His owner says, "Okay, okay, go play." She opens the door. Fluffy jumps out, runs straight to the nearest dog, and launches a preemptive strike. Don't mess with me! Chomp! But the strange dog doesn't back down from this sudden attack. It responds by biting back, and now Fluffy is really scared. His adrenaline starts flowing. Fluffy and the strange dog get into a full-fledged fight.

Fluffy's owner and the strange dog's owner both start shouting. Fluffy's owner pulls back on Fluffy's collar. Fluffy misinterprets her screams. To Fluffy, it seems like his owner is also scared of the other dog. To him, it seems that she is even participating in the fight! After all, she's standing there with her hand on his collar. So his fears are confirmed and reinforced, and he fights even harder against this terror.

"But I didn't train him to fight," wails Fluffy's owner as the vet stitches her dog up. And she's essentially right. But Fluffy's environment (including his learning experiences at the dog park and his naive owner's actions—or inactions) and his fearful disposition worked together to foster his aggressive behavior. And Fluffy's owner hasn't done anything to stop Fluffy from learning and practicing aggression. Unless Fluffy's owner learns to manage her dog's fears and control her dog's environment, Fluffy will continue to attack other dogs.

Aggressive behavior typically progresses along a line, starting with very minor signs, such as growling and raised fur. If the dog is given more opportunities to rehearse aggression, the dog is learning, practicing, and getting better at the behavior, even without direct training. Owners, especially those who rarely interact with their dogs, may not even notice that the aggressive behavior is progressing until an animal or a person gets seriously injured. Dog attack researcher Karen Delise notes: "Many owners [of dogs that committed fatal attacks] expressed shock at the 'sudden' and deadly aggressiveness of a pet they believed they knew. But, in reality, most owners did not really know their dogs. The fact that 25% of these dogs lived their lives at the end of a chain, 17% were running loose and 3% were kenneled indicates that many of these dogs were not spending a lot of quality time with their owners." (Fatal Dog Attacks: The Stories Behind the Statistics)

At the same time, those that claim that aggressive behavior occurs solely due to training are also incorrect. Fluffy's story above demonstrates this. Aggressive behavior is learned, but learning does not require formal training. Further along these lines, some dogs have temperaments that are conducive to aggressive behavior. That is, certain temperaments increase the liklihood that a dog will exhibit aggression. A dog with a fearful temperament, for example, may progress along the line from mere growling to an outright bite more quickly than a less fearful dog in a similar situation. Scott understands the influence of genetics in this regard; this is why he writes that, "Heredity can enter into the picture only in such ways as lowering or raising the threshold of stimulation..." (see quote box above). Temperament is the thing which raises or lowers that threshold and makes a dog more or less likely to react aggressively in a given situation.

The remedies for aggressive behavior are beyond the scope of this page; I merely wish to clarify that aggression is not entirely dependent on either genetics or environment. However, I would like to suggest that, regardless of whether or not a dog is temperamentally inclined toward aggression, it is the owner that ultimately determines whether the dog actually has the opportunity to react aggressively and rehearse aggressive behavior. Owners who are responsible and involved do not put their dog in such situations; they do not give their dog the opportunity to practice or escalate aggression.

For example, if an owner observes that their dog growls or lunges at other dogs, a responsible owner might employ a trainer or behavior counselor, who might recommend desensitization, controlled socialization, confidence-building, or other types of learning experiences. Or, the owner might decide to manage the behavior by restricting their dog's access to other dogs. Remember, it takes two for aggression to occur: one to aggress and the other to receive the aggression. How can a dog attack a victim that simply doesn't exist?

Either way, by working to inhibit, reduce, or prevent the behavior at the first signs of a problem, the responsible owner breaks the cycle of escalating aggression and significantly reduces the liklihood that their dog will ever have the opportunity to behave aggressively.

Dog owners cannot change a dog's genetics or temperament, but they can strongly influence behavior by manipulating the dog's environment and experiences. Dog owners are completely in control of the environment in which their dog lives. They decide where the dog spends its time and whether the dog interacts with other people or animals. They expose (or fail to expose) the dog to social situations and learning experiences. They teach (or fail to teach) the dog how to behave. When a dog attacks, the blame rests squarely on the owners' shoulders for failing to manage the dog's environment and behavior appropriately.

Let's close with a summary.

Genetics (nature) sets a dog's physical appearance and temperament.

Temperament influences the liklihood that a particular behavior will occur in a particular situation.

Each and every dog has an individual temperament.

Environment (nurture) includes the conditions in which a dog lives and the experiences the dog has.

Behavior occurs only after the interaction of genetics and environment.

Aggressive behavior requires environmental stimulation; there is no internal drive to aggress.

Dog owners cannot change genetics, but they have total control over the dog's environment and learning experiences. Dog owners therefore have significant control over their dog's behavior.

 

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