Question:
“I have a 26 month-old German Shepherd that has been obedience trained. I wanted to take my pet dog through a “personal protection” class and signed up to have him evaluated. These classes are offered by one of the most sought after dog trainer here in San Diego, California. The idea behind the evaluation was supposedly to see if my pet dog was able to undergo that type of training.”
German Shepherd
“The class was very motivating, offering an assortment of scenarios to test my pet dog’s ability to protect. The trainer told me to walk with my dog down a chosen pathway. Halfway along the trail, some sloppily-dressed man jumped down from a tree, yelling like crazy and firing a fake-gun that sounded very real (It even frightened me!).”
“Anyway, when the man jumped out and fired the fake-gun off, my dog just jumped up and tried his best to dash away. Because of this, the trainer said that my dog would never be an appropriate candidate for protection training, because, and I quote: “He was a coward”. Do you know of anything I could do to change the situation? I bought my dog for the precise purpose of being a family protector.”
Answer: Your Dog is Not a Coward
First of all, I’m not so sure that you should trust anyone that recommended that trainer, who is allegedly “highly recommended”. This of course is not your fault, but sometimes good dog trainers get perplexed with the bad ones. Moving on with your issue – let’s look at the situation from the opposite end of the spectrum – that of the confused, frightened dog.
Any dog can be frightened into running away. It doesn’t matter what type of breed or how tough a dog can be when facing danger, every dog is created with the survival mechanism to get away from danger and stay alive. This “training procedure” that was done with your pet was not only inappropriate to the dog’s protective abilities; the purpose was served to set off his instincts to run from an unknown attack, one that came on with complete shock.
If a crazy man jumped out of a tree and shot off any kind of gun in my face (fake or real) I’d be running in a flash as well! Such a test is not an indicator of the animal’s ability to become a protection dog. It means that the dog trainer has more work cut out for him/her than he or would have if the animal had impulsively attacked.
The sign of a good trainer is that he/she takes a less than perfect dog and brings him to his highest peak of perfection. So, here are two very important pieces of advice:
1) Your dog will be a great protector. I would dare you to have him in the yard at night and send a stranger to jump over the fence, and then you will see how well your dog will love and protect its family!
Important Note: Do NOT do this; it is only an example of my point.
2) Shop around for a good dog trainer who is willing to accept your pet’s behavior as a personal challenge.
Article by Sam Perry of Oh My Dog Supplies, check for current specials on personalized dog beds online.