
Obedience is the key, when you want to train your dog for police work. Here is some information on training German Shepherds for this purpose.
German Shepherds are often chosen for police work due to their agility, sharp sense of smell and aggression amongst other qualities. Police dog training is a long and laborious process which requires lot of patience on the trainer’s part. So, in case you wish to train your dog for police work, then be prepared to take pains for the same. Besides, training your dog on your own is never recommended, unless you are a certified police dog trainer. Nonetheless, you can certainly impart some protection dog training to your dog.
German Shepherd Police Training Tips
German Shepherds are strong dogs that are born with hunting skills. These dogs need a lot of activity to keep them mentally and physically fit. Police work is an ideal job for these dogs. However, one must understand that police training is far different from any other type of dog training. Such type of training needs to be provided by professional trainers only. Schutzhund club is one such club which specializes in police training to German Shepherds. However, not every dog gets approved by this club, as they look for particular qualities in a dog which might give them an edge over others. Hence, before you approach any club, it is imperative that you impart basic training to your dog.
Start Early
The younger the dog, the better are its chances of responding positively to any kind of training program. Hence, you should start training right from puppy age itself. If you have two or more German Shepherds you should start training all the puppies simultaneously. Eventually you will notice that one of the puppies outperforms others. This is the puppy that you should train for police work.
Obedience
Obedience is the most important quality in a police dog. If you cannot control your dog, he should be considered unfit for police work, no matter how talented or strong he is. Police dogs are trained to follow their master’s command under all circumstances. Hence, it is imperative that you should teach your dog to follow commands. You can start with simple commands such as sit, stay, get up, run etc.
Physical Training
German Shepherds are naturally active and bursting with energy. Hence, they can easily follow a rigorous work out schedule. Physical training to dog should include scaling 6 foot high fences, sprinting and jumping over 9 foot spans.
Retain Mastership
Police dogs are often handled by a single police officer. Every dog knows how to follow instructions of their respective masters. However, a change in mastership confuses a dog and may cause him to lose trust in you. Hence, it is important to be the sole trainer of your dog right from the beginning. This creates a strong bond between master and dog, so that he does not have a problem following your commands.
Tracking
This is another important area of training German Shepherds for police work. Teach your dog how to track things on a 3 hour cold scent. Expose him to a scent of a person or thing and encourage him to track things. Tracking dogs are of immense importance in police department.
Join a Club
Once you think your dog is ready to receive advanced German Shepherd training for police work, join a club such as Schutzhund. As mentioned above, these clubs look for right temperament in a dog. Hence, your dog may or may not get accepted, in spite of your efforts.
Even if your dog gets rejected, do not attempt to train him on your own. Remember, police training your dog on your own is very risky business. In the process, your dog may become aggressive and wouldn’t know what to do with it. As a result, you or people around you are at increased risk from such an uncontrollable canine.
If you are training your dog only for protection purpose, then be assured that German Shepherds are naturally trained to guard their owners. There is no need for any kind of specialized training. Just make sure your dog is obedient and well behaved.