Schutzhund Protection: Training Without Conflict
Most people are now training in the protection phase using mostly
prey drive. The following article is for dogs 1 year or older. A lot of
the trainers are agitating the dog, then giving the bite and slipping
the sleeve, having the handler run in a big circle and stopping 5 meters
or so in front of the helper. NOW IS WHEN THE CONFLICT BEGINS. The
handler is grabbing the dog by the collar and hanging him while they are
stepping on the sleeve and screaming "out". Once he releases the sleeve
it is quickly
kicked out where the dog cannot reach it. Then the helper challenges the
dog for the sleeve. This not working through defense drive, it is still
working in the prey drive.
The longer the dog is worked this way, the more he becomes imprinted to
not release the grip on the sleeve. Later when you want to teach the
out, it becomes more difficult and eventually it takes more force. These
are the dogs that when they are finished have problems with the outs
i.e. slow to release or double commands to out.
Alternative Method
This method will start to channel in some drive in defense. It will
give a safety margin to dogs that are not real hard. It will make the
handlers job easier. It will make the helpers job easier, with a margin
of safety to work close with the dog, as it will be in done in a
controlled manner. It will start to imprint the dog in a way that he
will understand that if he wants to bring more action when the helper
stops fighting and locks up and bring the sleeve back to life, he has to
release the grip and challenge the helper
by barking. He must understand that the out is not the end of session
but a way to bring the sleeve back to life , fight the helper and be
able to win the prey and take it back to his den (car or crate). This
method eliminates the conflict between dog, handler and helper, which
often becomes a 3 ring circus.
Details
You build a fenced area. It can be off to the side of the training
field. It should be 25 centimeters high and 50X50 with an opening 1.2 or
1.5 meters wide in the rear for entering and exiting. A gate can be used
hear if you want to do defense work without the handler inside , at a
later time. There should be a stable bench built along the front of the
pen and up against the fence. It should be .75 or 1 meter wide and run
the entire length of the front section. The helper will be using 2
sleeves and a whip or stick for
agitation purposes. I work dogs with a fur saver collar (the long links)
and clip the leash on the live ring and then come back to a dead ring
and clip the leash again. The collar should be snug so the dog cannot
back out of it but it is not on choke. I've read other post where it was
suggested to use a wide leather collar so it is more comfortable for the
dog. My opinion, this is hooey!!! The chain collar is only going to
bother dogs of soft temperament. This is protection work. When wide
leather collars are used,
the dog starts associating it with protection work, the same as he does
when he see the sleeve or the helper in scratch pants. When challenged
he must come in full drive without training aids. No this will not hurt
the dogs' throat.
Now we are ready to start. The handler comes into the pen about half way
and the helper agitates the dog coming in and running back. The handler
should let the dog go to the fence and try to bite the helper. The
handler should not be talking to the dog or praising or patting him.
This only distracts the dog. It is the helpers job to bring the dog out.
If this is a beginner dog you can use a young dog sleeve. When the
helper knows that the dog is in high drive he puts on sleeve # 1 and
goes up on the platform, bends over the fence and puts the sleeve down
to where the dog can bite it. He can then pull the dog up slightly
giving him a very short fight and slipping the sleeve . The handler
takes the dog out the back of the pen while he is carrying the sleeve.
The handler doesn't have to run like a nut case just a fast walk making
a circle of medium size and returning to the pen about half
way. Still no talking to the dog. The helper starts agitating with the
whip or stick and the dog will drop the sleeve and go to the fence. At
this moment the handler throws the sleeve over the side fence and the
helper gets # 2 sleeve that is behind him. One or two bites in the
beginning and the dog carries the sleeve to the car. You should stop
when the dog still wants to fight . Put him away frustrated. When a dog
reaches his peak in drive you must stop or you will be doing negative
training.
When the handler returns to the car or crate, stand and relax. Do not
give the dog out commands, just ignore him, he will get tired of holding
dead prey and release it. As training progresses the helper can start to
stay more up right making the dog come a little airborne to get the
sleeve and he can at times lift the dog off the ground. These high bites
will make the dog bite hard and full or he will lose the grip. This is
just basic build up work and getting the dog to learn a system. The out
is not the end of the
game. You are not doing true aggressive, defense training but you are at
least mixing prey with some defense. The young dog working behind the
fence will be more sure of himself. When you are satisfied with this
basic work you can take the dog to the training field to start the outs.
If there are questions of this article, Please no e mail or PM's.
Address them to the post. There are many other members that can give
good input and alternative methods.
Stop back soon, We always have new dogs
available!
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