It is the dog's ability to generally accept all aspects of its environment without exhibiting signs of nervousness, fear, or flight. By contrast, the dog with a sound nervous system will accept all such and any other changes in its environment without negative effect. B. Hardness Hardness is the dog's ability to recuperate from a disagreeable experience. Although the least critical of the three core traits, hardness is still a very desirable trait. Hardness allows the trainer to use the advantages of compulsion for precise competitive training without hindering the natural working spirit of the dog.
Conflict is the crossover stage between fight and flight behavior.
Any signs of withdrawal or retreat on the part of the dog Irritability threshold is the most critical and least understood aspects of the dog's temperament. It is very difficult to evaluate a dog's threshold and normally it requires a skilled eye to make the correct evaluation. In order to correctly evaluate the irritability threshold, the following test must be performed in the very specific manner outlined. The following steps should be taken to evaluate the dog's irritability threshold. The dog shall be taken to an area totally unfamiliar to him.