Having the perfect, A++ dog may sound good in theory, but it doesn’t make a good story.  Anyone who has seen or read Marley & Me would probably agree that Marley’s charm came more from his misbehavior than from his obedience.  Really, a perfectly well-behaved dog could be pretty boring.  So it is certainly not a bad thing to have a dog with a low letter grade.  The fact that you’ve given a home to this imperfect animal just shows what a great human you are (or that maybe you’re a little crazy – but that’s what makes life interesting, right?).

That said, the overall score is calculated as follows: Grades for each item are added together (A is four points, F is zero points), then divided by 5 to get an average.  Letter grades are assigned based on the score for each criterion and for the overall score.   Overall scores may have a + or – (we round up).  This is not meant to be a scientific survey.

Appearance

A  Cute as a button

B

C

D

F  Only Mom could love

Friendliness to People

A  Will not leave visitors alone

B

C

D

F  Hides under the bed

Friendliness to Dogs

A  Would rather live at the dog park

B

C

D

F  Runs behind my legs

Special Talents

A  Steals the Stage

B

C

D

F  Lousy Performer

Successfulness at Begging for food

C  I never give in

B

A

B

C  My dog is my taste tester