AKC Canine Good Citizen

 1. Accepting a friendly stranger

Evaluator approaches and pretends to shake hands with handler  (hands 6- 12” apart). Evaluator does not touch dog.

2. Sitting politely for petting

Evaluator pets dog; dog must show no shyness or resentment.

3. Appearance and grooming

Evaluator inspects dog, combs or brushes lightly, examines ears and each  front foot.

4. Out for a walk

Handler takes dog for a short walk including right turn, left turn, about turn and stop. 

5. Walking through a crowd 

Dog and handler walk close to several people; dog may show causal interest but not jump up.

6. Sit and down on cue/Staying in place

Handler shows that dog can do both sit and down, then chooses a position, leaves dog and goes to the end of a 20 ft. line, and returns immediately.

7. Coming when called

With dog still on 20 ft. line from Test 6, handler walks out 10 ft. and calls the dog.

8. Reaction to another dog

Two handlers and dogs' approach, pretend to shake hands (hands 6-12” apart), exchange pleasantries, then move on.

 9. Reaction to distractions 

Distractions are presented; dog may not panic or show aggression.

10. Supervised separation

Handler goes out of sight for 3-min. Dog is held on a 6-ft. leash by an evaluator.

 To pass the CGCU test, dogs must pass all 10 items of the test. 

Passing the Urban CGC test or Canine Good Citizen test does not make a dog a service dog or emotional support dog. A key distinction of service or emotional support dogs is that the owner/handler has a disability. It is unethical to misrepresent a pet dog as a service or emotional support animal.