The 9 Dognition Cognitive Profiles
There is no single kind of smart. After more than 122,000 dogs completed the Dognition Assessment, nine distinct cognitive profiles emerged — each one a different balance of empathy, communication, cunning, memory and reasoning. The profiles come out of the canine cognition research of Dr. Brian Hare and Vanessa Woods at the Duke Canine Cognition Center, described in The Genius of Dogs.
See the data behind the profiles in the Canine Cognition Data Center — charts built from a research sample of 25,463 assessments.
11.4% of dogs · GeniusAce — The All-Rounder
Aces are the dogs with it all — pros at reading social cues and just as gifted at solving problems on their own.
Read the Ace profile →
18.2% of dogs · ExpertCharmer — The Smooth Operator
Charmers have exceptional social skills — they read human body language like a book, with a clever streak hiding behind the wag.
Read the Charmer profile →
25% of dogs · ExpertSocialite — The Social Butterfly
Socialites take gracefully interacting with humans to a whole new level — they read you like a language and rarely lose.
Read the Socialite profile →
8% of dogs · ExpertExpert — The Solo Problem-Solver
Experts have every cognitive tool they need to tackle the day on their own — and a memory that doesn't forget what works.
Read the Expert profile →
13.6% of dogs · ExpertRenaissance Dog — The Well-Rounded
Renaissance Dogs are the canine embodiment of reliability — flexible across every cognitive dimension.
Read the Renaissance Dog profile →
17% of dogs · ExplorerProtodog — The First Friend
Protodogs echo the first wolves who chose us — flexible problem solvers with the social acumen to turn to humans when needed.
Read the Protodog profile →
3.4% of dogs · GeniusEinstein — The Rocket Scientist
A keen understanding of physics makes this dog practically a rocket scientist. Einsteins are the intellectual architects of the dog world.
Read the Einstein profile →
8% of dogs · GeniusMaverick — The Lone Wolf
The Maverick strikes out alone and solves problems in their own way — cognitively closer to their wolf ancestors than most dogs.
Read the Maverick profile →
9.1% of dogs · ExplorerStargazer — The Misunderstood
Stargazers have their own often-misunderstood type of genius — self-reliant, present-minded, and just a little bit wild.
Read the Stargazer profile →
Common questions about the profiles
What are the Dognition cognitive profiles?
The Dognition profiles are nine patterns of canine cognition — Ace, Charmer, Socialite, Expert, Renaissance Dog, Protodog, Einstein, Maverick and Stargazer. Each one describes a different balance across five dimensions: empathy, communication, cunning, memory and reasoning. They emerged from the results of over 122,000 dogs who completed the Dognition assessment.
How is a dog's profile determined?
A dog's profile comes from the pattern of its scores across all five cognitive dimensions, not from any single game or dimension. Two dogs can score similarly on one dimension and still land in different profiles because the rest of the pattern differs.
Is one cognitive profile better than another?
No. The profiles describe cognitive style rather than rank. A dog that relies on reading people and a dog that relies on independent problem solving are both effective; they just solve problems in different ways. Knowing which one you have is what makes training and enrichment easier.
Where do the Dognition profiles come from?
They come from the canine cognition research of Dr. Brian Hare and Vanessa Woods at the Duke Canine Cognition Center, described for general readers in The Genius of Dogs, applied to the results of the 122,000+ dogs assessed through Dognition.
Looking for "Dognitive"? You mean Dognition.
People searching for Dognitive, dognitive testing or a "dognitive profile" are almost always looking for Dognition — the canine cognition company founded by Dr. Brian Hare of Duke University. There is no separate Dognitive product. The cognitive profiles on this page, and the at-home assessment that produces them, are what those searches are after.
Which profile is your dog?
The only way to know is to watch how your dog actually solves problems. The Dognition Assessment walks you through science-based games at home and returns your dog's profile across all five cognitive dimensions.