| INTRODUCTION TO THE SCHUTZHUND SPORT
- part 2 (PART
1, PLEASE CLICK HERE) |
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There are reservations in many minds about protection training of dogs by
private individuals. These questions are relevant, for enhancing a dog's
willingness and ability to perform an effective attack on a human being is
very serious business. One view is that nobody should be permitted to keep
or breed animals capable of harming a man, that the emasculation of our
utility breeds is a noble service to mankind. Perhaps the happy day when no
man need be concerned with defense of family and property is on the horizon,
perhaps our all powerful government is about to introduce a global program
to incapacitate the criminal element (surly the best kept secret of recent
years!), rendering dogs with the protective potential superfluous. You may
not believe it, and I may not believe it, but by and large contemporary
American breeders of working dogs are well on the way to being prepared for
the new era, well on the way to rendering our protective heritage breeds
impotent!
But if the breeding and possession of dogs with credible protective
capability is to be a valid prerogative of the individual citizen, there
must be a means to encourage responsible ownership and provide the necessary
training and support. The Schutzhund movement has a major role to play in
this.
Proper training does not create something that was not there in the first
place, for the dog that can be effectively trained was physically capable
before hand; his reactions simply become more predictable and controllable.
The properly protection enhanced dog is truly a more reliable companion, for
the most dangerous dog is the one apt to bite out of fear, an inability to
deal with the world at large. The strong, confident dog who knows he can
deal with whatever comes over the horizon has no need of the preemptive
bite, can wait for a real threat before taking aggressive action.
The correct Schutzhund may be taken out in public with confidence and
introduced to guests in the home along with the rest of the family. There is
something very seriously wrong with the dog who must be locked away when
there are gusts in the home, regardless of breed or training history. The
prime purpose of the Schutzhund sport is the provision of strong, stable
dogs by serving as a guide to breeding programs and providing the training
so that the individual dog can become the good canine citizen he should be,
an animal that can participate in all aspects of the day by day life of his
family.
There are those who would have you believe that there is no need to train
a dog in order to bring out the protective potential, that a particular
breed is made up of "naturally protective" individuals. This is well and
good if one finds it of comfort and has no real need, there is after all the
place for the placebo. But if one intends to go in harms way, to depend on
the dog for assistance when the going gets rough, there are two very sound
reasons for protection training. In the first place, the dog that is not
tested is simply an unknown quantity, for there are some dogs in every breed
that just don't have what it takes, and it is impossible to identify them
without testing each candidate. Finding your dog inadequate when he fails to
respond to a real attack may mean that you never have the opportunity to
replace him with an adequate dog.
The other reason for protection training is that many dogs are taught
from a young age that any sign of aggression, even in play, is not allowed
and will in fact result in being cuffed in the head. Dogs are sensitive,
they can be tremendously inhibited without the owner's being aware of the
process. The well trained obedience or show ring competitor is at a
particular disadvantage in that they are apt to ignore the mugger thinking
he is just another "distraction" and expect you to be pleased at the show of
good manners! Many dogs will simply stand confused, not know how to react,
when a simulated attack on the owner occurs as part of an evaluation. Their
training has blunted the protective instinct, rendered it impotent when most
needed.
Since the sport is a gauge of the working potential of the protective
breeds, its credibility would seem to be dependent on the link between
successful participation in a trial and practical applications such as
police work or family protection. It is to be understood up front that it
would be most foolish to take your high scoring Schutzhund III to a tough
neighborhood and insult the natives, expecting him to spare you the normal
consequences of such a foolish action! When the chips are down the dog may
realize that this is not a game and head for the hills. On the sport field
most dogs understand quite well for the agitator must play by the rules and
may only strike back in a prescribed manner with limited force.
It would seem reasonable that the capable boxer would be an effective
street fighter and most of them probably would, but this is not necessarily
true in every case. Similarly, most good sport dogs have the potential for a
real protective functionality that could be readily enhanced with a minimum
of additional training. The protection test is a simulated situation,
somewhat stylized and not totally realistic. There are those dogs who can by
careful training be acclimated to the sport situation and yet who would
likely falter when faced with a real, unrehearsed, threat. The more skilled
and experienced the judge and helper, the less likely these boarder line
dogs are to pass a protection test.
The experienced trainer will usually have a good idea of which dogs are
dependent on the familiarly of the padded sleeve as permission to bite and
which would respond to a real situation, attack regardless of the garb of
the aggressor. A hidden sleeve, that is one compact enough to be worn under
a shirt or jacket, can be used to test a dog's reaction to a more realistic
situation and also as a means of more advanced training to insure a
realistic protection functionality.
Thus while it is true that some successful sport dogs would fail in an on
the street confrontation, just as some soldiers who are sound in training
fail in combat for reasons not fully understood, it is not necessarily the
fault of the training methodology. Dogs are not machines and it is not
possible to be absolutely sure of what they will do in a new situation.
Stability and inherent responsibility are essential attributes of any dog
to be protection trained, either for sport or service. Children and people
in general are going to walk up and handle the police dog just as they are
going to approach the private citizen's sport trained dog. It is pointless
to say that they should know better, the simple fact is that it is going to
happen. Fair or not, the burden is on the dog and his owner. The dog who
threatens or bites innocent people simply cannot be tolerated; and it is a
tribute to the stability of the animals and the skill of those doing the
training that this high standard is almost universally met.
Although Schutzhund training and competition is a sport, it is also a
very serious business with important obligations for those who choose to
participate. The decision to become involved should thus be made only after
careful investigation of what is involved and careful consideration of the
implications of a commitment. Many who become interested are likely to be
subject to subtle warnings such as "One of your kids is going to give the
attack command, how will you feel when a neighborhood child is mauled by
your vicious Schutzhund dog and ends up in the hospital?"
Is protection training a dog in fact equivalent to leaving a loaded
pistol on the dining room table? Does it increase the likelihood of a
serious incident resulting in injury to an innocent person? The answer is a
qualified no, and the qualifications are a sound dog and sound training
methodology. It is a simple fact that owning a dog physically capable of
injury to a human being involves an element of risk, for several times each
year there are newspaper reports of a death of a human being, all too often
a child, as a result of an attack by a dog or dogs. In a sense the fact that
such incidents are reported in detail is positive, in that very few of the
25,000 deaths that occur as a consequence of mixing alcohol and motor
vehicles are interesting enough for much newspaper coverage. But even one
death is of course one too many.
The fact is that very few if any of these incidents involve protection
trained dogs, although I do not claim that such dogs are less likely to be
involved; I simply have no relevant statistical information. What I do know
is that by building the dog's confidence in himself and enhancing the
handler's control and understanding the properly trained Schutzhund dog is a
better canine citizen, substantially less likely to be involved in an
irresponsible action after his training than before. One of the primary
causes of dog bite incidents is the fear motivated preemptive action by the
dog that was not properly socialized and/or of inherently unstable
character.
The sport trained dog is exposed to many situations that require
restraint and self control as a normal part of his training and living with
his partner. In the properly run Schutzhund club, unstable dogs are
recognized as such before the protection training begins or advances very
far and the owner made aware of the danger he is living with. If a dog is
refused training and put down or more closely watched as a consequence the
safety of the public is enhanced by one less potentially dangerous dog.
The danger that a child will send a trained dog against an innocent
person and cause an injury is simply not a serious concern if proper
precautions are taken. The Schutzhund dog is taught to respond only to the
active adult aggressor rather than a passive person. He understands full
well that it is the commands of adult family members that must be obeyed,
those of small children are in general regarded with tolerant amusement. It
is the situation and tone of voice that leads to the aggressive response
rather than the actual words used.
The owner of a dog of any of the protective breeds takes on important
responsibilities, for they are capable of a great deal of damage. Schutzhund
training, when applied to a sound dog in responsible hands, is an effective
means of fulfilling these responsibilities, for it provides an enhanced
level of discipline and control that renders unjustified aggression less
likely. Also, the discipline also provides the ability to call back a dog
when necessary, thus providing an extra margin of safety.
Although not likely, it is conceivable that a dog could be taught to make
an unprovoked attack on verbal command and that a child could then invoke
the trained response. But the same child could also abuse an automobile or
alcohol with tragic results; and these are much more common occurrences as
the reader of any newspaper is well aware. The owner of a Shepherd or
Bouvier must teach his children respect for the potential of the dog, just a
he should teach respect for the automobile, alcohol, power tools and the
many other things that have legitimate purposes but are nevertheless
potentially dangerous. This is a very serious responsibility that every dog
owner should be made to understand.
As in any physically active sport, there is an element of risk on the
training field where a single lapse in concentration can be the cause of an
injury. The agitator is the most likely candidate; and he understands the
risks before stepping on the field and picking up the sleeve. The point is
that it is his own choice, the gratification of working the dog and
contributing to his progress is satisfactory compensations for placing
himself in jeopardy.
Each of us who participate - as instructor, agitator or trainer - is
responsible for the safety of those involved and for producing reliable dogs
suitable for living with their families in contemporary American society.
Each person interested in participation must make his own evaluation of the
overall merits of the program and make his own commitment. He should also
contemplate the inherent risks of owning a dog with the protective potential
without knowing how it is likely to respond in a situation he regards as
provocative, or even which situations will be so regarded. The owner of the
Schutzhund trained dog has the advantage of knowing first hand how his dog
will respond to a wide variety of stressful circumstances.
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| (Articles written by: Jim Engel Copyright 1993) |
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| (PART
1, PLEASE CLICK HERE) |
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