Why Behavior-Mod Scorecards Should Never Show Letter Grades

Grades Feel Good and Mislead

"A-" on leash reactivity tells an owner their dog is fine when threshold is still twenty feet. Disputes follow. Referrals die.

Rendering Rule

behavior_mod category skills: lifecycle stage, success-rate trend, video evidence — never obedience-style letter grades. Enrollment-level ABC trends live in Behavior Trends panel.

Owner Portal

Progress tab shows stage bars and sparklines — not narrative overclaim. Honest slowness beats false cheer.

Trainer Internal Use

AI-extracted grades may auto-apply internally with trainer correction — still not owner-visible until publishing gates say so.

Scenario

Owner compares portal to neighbor's obedience graduation. Your behavior case shows stage "fluency" on management with downward incident chart — different story, accurate story.

Stack

Dog training progress tracking software and dog training documentation software implement the rule. Board-and-train software behavior tracks inherit same scorecard semantics.