Suggestions for Beginning k9 Training

[01lowbird]

I have an 11 week old male gsd. I have began basic obidence training, working on sit, down, and stay for the last few weeks. I am not a certified trainer but I would like to get a head start on his training while he is young. The overall goal is to turn the dog into a patrol dog for me and my department. Any suggestions towards working on toy drive and scents would be greatly appreciated.

[lcht2]

what kind of pedigree does your pup have? your best bet would be to forget about the puppy and find a green dog. more then likely if you have no experience with working dogs, this puppy wont have a chance.

[onyx'girl]

Welcome 01lowbird. I would look at other departments K9 handlers and where they have been training, maybe you could be mentored with one.
As you already have a puppy I would have him evaluated by the above.
Hopefully your pup has the temperament of what it takes.
I wouldn't put too much obedience on him as a youngster, manners yes but no over correcting. Confidence is very important.

[01lowbird]

Originally Posted by lcht2

what kind of pedigree does your pup have? your best bet would be to forget about the puppy and find a green dog. more then likely if you have no experience with working dogs, this puppy wont have a chance.

while i do appreciate the exuberant amount of confidence you have in me, i tend not to fail in life and my dog will be yet another example of this.

onyx'girl, thanks for the welcome. the puppy has already been evaluated a the trainer that my department has used in the past. the trainer was impressed with the dog and what i had already accomplished. he plans on starting his training at around the 9 month mark. he did in fact give me pointers and some instructions on training but i feel the more inputs and information i have the better.

[onyx'girl]

As I am not a K9 handler, can't really give any advice, but while you wait for the 9 month mark, work on your bond and the pups focus on you along with his recall. That foundation will go far in whatever training you do.
This site may be of help to you, there are many K9 handlers that frequent it:
http://www.workingdogforum.com/

[Smithie86]

Most green k9s are selected at 1.5 years.

If the dog does not have crazy hunt and ball drive, most depts will not look at the dog. And crazy to what a certified k9 eval is looking for is different from most people.

[DFrost]

Originally Posted by 01lowbird

I have an 11 week old male gsd. I have began basic obidence training, working on sit, down, and stay for the last few weeks. I am not a certified trainer but I would like to get a head start on his training while he is young. The overall goal is to turn the dog into a patrol dog for me and my department. Any suggestions towards working on toy drive and scents would be greatly appreciated.

As a trainer for a law enforcement agency, I'll make two comments. There is reason police trainers generally wait until a dog is 18 months or better before we test it. Buying a puppy is a crap shoot. At 18 months, the dog can be tested for both the required behaviors and physical requirements. Doing that ensures a dog is selected that is suited for the type work needed. When buying a puppy, a handler is often faced with the dilemma of trying to train dog that is not suited for the type of work the handler wants to do. As for what to do with a puppy; let it be a puppy---- socialize, socialize, socialize but let it be a puppy.

As for pedigrees, while a dog from a respected lineage may increase your chances, puppies are still a crapshoot as there is no guarentee.

DFrost

[Ace952]

Originally Posted by 01lowbird

while i do appreciate the exuberant amount of confidence you have in me, i tend not to fail in life and my dog will be yet another example of this.

For the dog's sake I hope you are right. What happens if he doesn't live up to your standard?

I have heard from other trainers that for K9's you want a green dog to start with exactly for the reasons listed by others in this thread.

[01lowbird]

if the dog does not have "it" then i will have a pet instead of a working dog. while this is not what i want i will enjoy our time together either way.

on testing at approx 18 months, i have a couple questions on this is. what happens to the dogs prior? im assuming they have obidence and are not as "green" as some people lead on. what other qualities besides toy drive and general intelligence are a must for a working dog?

[DFrost]

Originally Posted by 01lowbird

if the dog does not have "it" then i will have a pet instead of a working dog. while this is not what i want i will enjoy our time together either way.

on testing at approx 18 months, i have a couple questions on this is. what happens to the dogs prior? im assuming they have obidence and are not as "green" as some people lead on. what other qualities besides toy drive and general intelligence are a must for a working dog?

If the dog doesn't have it, you have that option of keeping it as a pet. Law enforcement trainers, such as myself, don't. We need dogs that can be trained, placed in service and stay in service for a projected number of years.

When testing, each trainer looks for certain behaviors. Most of us though look for a specific attitude. It's difficult to describe, easily observed. The level of "green" depends on the vendor the dog is obtained from. Some vendors purchase dogs with more training, some with less. Some vendors, which is becoming fewer and fewer have completely untrained dogs available. Most dogs used in law enforcement today are purchased from vendors. While more and more U.S. bred dogs are becoming available, the majority of dogs purchased by law enforcement trainers are imported.

DFrost