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It has been a long time since I wanted to write
something on this never-ending debate, but I am frustated by the
dishonesty of some disreputable dog "trainers" advertising dogs and
training, especially on the internet. I'd like to offer a few
common-sense tips for finding a good protection dog.
I have trained a large number of dogs for high-level
sport as well as for professional protection work, both personal and
professional law enforcement K-9 programs.I regularly lecture around
the world, giving seminars in my specialties: Schutzhund, Ring Sports,
Police K-9 Units, Search And Rescue, and Advanced Obedience. I train
"sport" dogs and "service" dos and their handlers to achieve their
highest potential.
In my work, I have come across many disreputable
trainers who advertise for large amounts of money dogs that are poorly
trained or worse.
So if I'm in the market for a protection dog, how
can I identify a reliable dog trainer?
If you've searched the web, you know how many titles
can be put in front or behind a name. Some of these titles are valid
and recognized worldwide, but others are only catchy words, giving no
information about the skills of a trainer whatsever. Be aware that
titles such the "President", "CEO", "Master Trainer", etc., of some
company that has the words "xxx International, Inc.," "K-9," or
"Protection," in the name, in and of themselves, mean nothing.
Anyone can open a business with a cathcy name, pay
someone to build a state of the art website, and target someone like
yourself to buy a fully trained dog with many guarantees. Especially
if you are just beginning to look for a dog or dog trainer, it is very
easy to be misled.
Don't be a victim of such scams! Investing $10,000 to
$35,000 in a dog is not a guarantee that the dog is worth this kind of
money. I will be the first to tell you that for sure a dog can be
worth such amount, but the fact is that such highly valuable dogs are
very rare. When you browse the web long enough, I am sure you will see
many dogs in this price range. The fact is that they are probably
worth $4,000 at the most, if that. There are simply not that many
highly trained dogs out there, and for sure there are not many
trainers that are capable of training a dog of that caliber. Think
about it: would a world-class, $35,000 dog, desire by K-9, Secret
Service, and Protection Companies around the world, be likely to be
advertised on the internet to strangers? No.
The best way to compare trainers/instructors is by
examining their past achievements. For this reason, if you cannot find
any information about performance and training records on a given
website, don't waste your time.
Here are some typical taglines to watch out for:
"30 years of combined experience" If someone
has 30 years of successful experience (or, in the case of "combined"
experience, if several people together have worked for a sum total of
30 years), one would expect numerous valid accomplishments that can be
verified easily.
The statement on its own means nothing.
"Master Trainer" Is one of the most misused
titles in the dog training world. For example, it can mean that
someone is in charge of the training of big number of dogs and
handlers in the army. It can also mean that someone has his own
business with one employee and he is in charge of the training. The
second obviously has no merit.
You can be a "Master Trainer" too!
"Expert Trainer" This must be someone who has
expertise, right? So ask who considers them as an expert and see for
yourself it this is true. They should provide you with references and
credentials of the people/companies who see them as experts.
"Graduate of xxx School For Dog Trainers" Have
you ever looked into what it takes to enroll and graduate from dog
trainers' school? It is not even remotely enough to guarantee
someone's skills as a dog trainer. Yes, it does look good on a resume.
But what it really takes is to have a few free months and enough money
to spend on the tuition, and you can "graduate" from at least one of
the many levels the school offers. I will say, in defense of dog
training schools, that it is a very good place to begin learning or a
career in the business, and I encourage people interested in dog
training to look into some of them. But I can't emphasize enough that
it is just a start and on its own means not much.
"Training Director" Is normally associated with
the person in charge of the training in Schutzhund, Ring or any other
dogsport club. He is also the helper or decoy who works the dogs in
protection. There are many such dog clubs out there. Some, of course,
are better than others. In som,e instances it takes 3 people to form a
club, but no one of them many have sufficient knowledge of dog
training. As with all other credentials, research the club to
determine if the training director is likely to be a qualified
trainer.
"Member of xxx Club" Being a member of a club
in most cases involves simply joining the organization and paying your
yearly dues. It is in no way a measure of training skill or
achievement.
What about video clips and photographs of trained
dogs?
Seeing a video clip of a demo dog, is not enough to
make a sound judgement!
First of all, a video does not prove that the dog on
the clip is trained by the company in question. In addition, with
current technology, videos are very easy to edit. The dog may look
strong only because it is in a familiar environment with familiar
decoy and has repeated the scenario numerous times before the filming.
A clip of a dog does not serve as a proof of the quality and abilities
of a dog or company. Picture obviously give even less more
information.
Finally, videos and pictures are very often stolen
from someone else's website.
So what do I look for?
Look for achievements in relevants areas. Don't
be shy to ask for performance records. After all, you are a client who
is willing to invest serious money in a dog. You deserve accurate
representation of the trainer's expertise. Schutzhund, Ring Sports,
Protection Sport Association (PSA), and others are competitive sports
that exist to determine who the top trainers are.
Some of the organizations have very small number of
members and competition is not as strong, so make sure to learn about
the competitive sport most appropriate for the dog you are trying to
buy.
Most of the dogsports have club level competition,
which leads to regional level, then national level, and finally world
championships; similarly, many have categories, such as level 1, 2, 3
and so on. The top "Level 1" dog at a given show or competition will
be weaker than the bottom "Level 2" dog at the same show. Dogsports
have specific structure and rules go to by, so everyone who competes
is judged equally.
Some people enter the dogsports arena so they can
learn how to train dogs and have fun with it. Some do so to show the
quality of their dogs and their breed, which in some cases is a proof
of sound temperament and breed worthiness. No matter what other
reasons there might be, a dog competition is the outlet for trainers
to prove themselves. A top competitor trainer will make sure the dog
is controlled, understands commands, and is reliable.
That said, being a top competitor is not enough. A
trainer must also have proven himself in training strictly protection
dogs and handlers as well.
Definitely do not buy a dog sight-unseen. Go
and see at least three dogs that have been trained by the individual
or company for protection. Meet them, and ask to see them perform in a
scenario you set up and not the company!
Intruders don't sneak in your house wearing bite suits
or bite sleeves. Any legit protection dog trainer can demonstrate this
to you with the dog in question.
Don't forget also to find out if they trained the dog,
or if they bought it already trained. Granted there are few trainers
who do not compete, but they have taught others to reach high levels
in various sports. Even the Police K-9s have trials and
certifications. Anyone on the internet who claims to be a master
trainer in their K-9 International or global company and is telling
you to buy their once-in-a-lifetime, $35,000 dog, should be able to
prove their knowledge and expertise in dog training first. If the
seller can't provide you with this information or if you can't find it
anywhere on their website, it is best to look elsewhere.
What do I look for in the actual dog?
It is quite common to describe the level if the
protection dogs as Level 1, Level 2, Executive Protection, and so on.
In many ways this is based on the structure of competitions. But one
company's Level 2 dog might be very weak compare to another company's
Level 1. There's no unified system for "grading" dogs on the market.
You can judge a company's own standarts by checking
out the knowledge of the trainers, which will first be evident in
their accomplishments. If all this looks good, then find out about
their clients. Where have they placed dogs? Are the dogs, working
dogs, sport dogs or pets? Do those clients return for additional dogs?
Are they satisfied? Check references.
One thorny issue is that of the sport dog versus the
"real" dog. Contrary to the way you should judge the skills of a
trainer (competition accomplishments), dogs that have done well in
certain sports may actually not be suitable as protection dogs.
It nutshell, many dogs that do well in dogsports,
including PSA, may be only "sport" dog, meaning they will not protect
you or your family if needed. They will not bite the intruder or
attacker without sleeve or a bite suit. You may see a very fancy video
of a dog that works great on a bite suit, but he may not do so well if
he had to bite in a real situation. This is where a skilled and honest
trainer is necessary to tell you about the dog in question. As an
example, on occasion police K-9 dogs with the highest performance
records in trial will be purchased by a police force and find
themselves, say chasing a suspect in a dark alley. But when the dog
finally catches up with the criminal, it becomes highly confused and
stressed, because it wants to bite him, but it doesn't see the
familiar equipment. These cases are rare but they are evidence of how
important is to select the right source for your protection dog.
What breed should I look for?
Pretty much any dog of sound temperament can be used
to some extent as a protection dog, or at least as an alert dog. The
smaller breeds (up to 50 lbs) obviously would not be "man stoppers".
Any larger-size dog could be a protection dog. I have to say that the
most dogs must go through vigorous training in order to understand
when they are needed and how to be of help. The dog has to have
natural protective instincts, be pack-oriented, and/or territorial.
Even an Afghan Hound could do it (a rare case, but I
have seen it done). Generally speaking, and only generally speaking,
some breeds make better guards dogs, (meaning they would do well
protecting their territory), and others would make better
owner-protection dogs (meaning they would do well protecting their
owners)
Two of the universal protection dog breeds are the
German Shepherd and the Belgian Malinois. At present, these are the
two breeds that stand out of the rest. Around the world it is not an
accident that 99% of the police and army dogs are Malinois or German
Shepherd. Yes, a Dobermann or a Bouvier, among others, could do just
as fine a job, but the temperament of these breeds has been
compromised in recent years for their looks, and the prevalence of
genetic illnesses such as Hip Dysplasia has risen dramatically. A dog
from a Mastiff breed can be very strong and a great deterrent, but
their trainability level does not come close to that of a Malinois or
a German Shepherd. Therefore, they are limited in what they can be
used for in protection. Another plus for the Malinois and the German
Shepherd is they have double coat, meaning they can function in any
climate, snow or desert. They have been bred and used for protection
from the late 1.800s, and through the decades and around the world
they have beem selected for their temperament, trainability, agility,
strong bite and scent work, and their lack of fear. In recent years
the Malinois has become the number one choice for protection work due
to their work ethicm trainability and natural protectiveness.
In any case, you can find a dog of almost any breed
that can serve as a protection dog. You should take the following
qualities into consideration:
Good size. A dog has to be big enough to be effective.
Speed. As with an athletem the weight and speed of a
dog have their advantages and disadvantages. A dog that has a bit of
both is the most universal type, therefore the Malinois and the German
Shepherd are the breed of choice without doubt.
Health. Note that the Malinois have fewer health
problems than any other working breed.
I hope that this article will steer you in the right
direction and help you ask the right questions so you can find the
best protection or sport dog for your needs.
Written by: Ivan Balabanov (www.ivanbalabanov.com)
2000 FMBB IPO Vice World Champion
with Django Ot Vitosha
2007 FMBB IPO World Champion with
Qenny Ot Vitosha
2007 FCI IPO World Champion with
Qenny Ot Vitosha
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