AI Analyzes Dog Personalities – New Possibilities, Real Risks

A new study published in Scientific Reports shows how artificial intelligence can help us better understand dog personalities. Researchers used machine learning to analyze a massive dataset from C-BARQ and identified five distinct personality types:

• Excitable/Attached – emotional, easily aroused, forms strong bonds with their guardian.

• Fearful/Anxious – shows fear of people, dogs, or new situations.

• Reserved/Predatory – independent, low social need, strong hunting instincts.

• Reactive/Assertive – prone to frustration, may respond with aggression.

• Calm/Affable – low fear, excitability, and aggression; learns easily.

  
  

Using a decision tree model, the AI predicted personality type with 99% accuracy.

What does this mean in practice?

Upsides:

Better matching of training methods to individual dogs

Smarter adoption decisions

Deeper understanding of a dog’s unique needs

Downsides:

Labeling: a dog tagged as “reactive” may be unfairly judged or overlooked

Selection bias: AI could be used to exclude dogs from breeding or training programs, ignoring their potential to change

Technocratized relationships: overreliance on algorithms might replace observation, empathy, and real connection

Dogs aren’t data – they’re sentient beings with the capacity for change.

AI can be a powerful tool – as long as we remember who’s really doing the feeling and thinking.

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Amirhosseini, M. H., Yadav, V., Serpell, J. A., Pettigrew, P., & Kain, P. (2024). An artificial intelligence approach to predicting personality types in dogs. Scientific Reports, 14(1), 2404. doi:10.1038/s41598-024-52920-9