Assessment Items

SAFER® is a seven-item canine aggression assessment that generally takes no more than 10 minutes per dog to complete. The SAFER Assessment is designed to assess the probability of future aggression in dogs age six months and older. The assessment uses researched items that elicit responses that are predictive of future behavior.

Articles

About the Assessment Items
How to Use these Materials
Which Dogs to Assess and When
Training, Skills, and Equipment for Assessment
Role of the Observer

View the Full Assessment

SAFER Assessment Items

• Item 1: Look
• Item 2: Sensitivity
• Item 3: Tag
• Item 4: Squeeze
• Item 5: Food Behavior
• Item 6: Toy Behavior
• Item 7: Dog-to-Dog Behavior

Scoring and Assessment Follow-up

Body posture posters for your assessment room (.pdf)
SAFER Assessment Worksheet (.pdf)
Using the SAFER Assessment Worksheet (.pdf)
SAFER Scores and Probability of Aggression
After Assessment: Determining Next Steps 
Behavior Modification Protocols