Police K9 Unit Candidates

[godfreyc]

The law enforcement agencies in my area don't accept donated dogs. They have a "kennel" who provides service dogs to the police under contract for a specific price already trained.

[spoteet]

I talked to each one of the officers who handled these dogs and they told me the dogs were dog and/or people aggressive. I would never make a statement like that based on one encounter.

I feel there is a need for the dog to be sharp. The question I always have is during a chase when the dog is all worked up, what if he encounters another dog in the neighborhood or a small child. I assume their training is strong enough to keep them from getting side tracked.

[Rob75]

Originally posted by JonandMichelle

But honestly, health is a #1 concern, you don't want a dog who is going to have HD later on down the road or a family history of other illnesses. Strong nerves to handle the pressure put the dog by the day to day duties. Over dominant, no thank you, don't need the problem with a dog deciding at the wrong time to assert himself, i.e.. dealing with a suspect. A dog who can react with pray drive and defensive drive to handle himself when I send him for a bite, turn it off like a light switch when I tell him to, that's the dog for me. A dog who has the play drive to search for narcotics or explosives even when he's been searching for several hours with out a find but keeps on going just to chew on that toy or simply to please you. As for the question of sending a dog with aggression problems to a police department or into the military. I don't agree that would be the best way to handle it. Most PD's don't have personnel available to train the dog the way he needs to be in order to channel that aggressiveness, the military could work with it and channel it the right way but you always's run the risk of it rearing it's ugly head at the wrong time and that runs the risk of injury to the handler or someone else and we all know what kind of damage a dog with that kind of training can inflict.

Totally agree with Jon. I was also an Air Force cop, didn't work MWD but worked enough with them at Clark AB in the Phillippines. We had the largest MWD corp in the military. Numerous types of dogs, Belgian Malinois, GSD's, Dobes and one Rottie. Some of the Belgians were fiercely aggressive, to the point some of them when released bit their handlers. The Rottie on the otherhand was the olnly one I trusted, he had an excellent temperament, and was good at his job. Lackland AFB probably has one of the best K-9 academy's out there. Do a search on the Discovery Channels website. They had a very good show on K-9's, the quality that is wanted and needed, and about the training. We also had a horribly ugly mutt that was a rescue from a shelter here in the states. He may have been ugly, but boy could he find the dope.

[FredAl]

Unwarranted aggression – toward other dogs, animals or people – is a trait that should be eliminated from service dog breeding, raising and training. However many dog brokers prey on police departments that lack or do not have experience with K9s; and the brokers are able to sell them, to put it simply, JUNK at discount prices. In most cases, the police department administrator, who is more concerned with the bottom-line, dollars, rather than effective service, would go for the bargain buys. And as the old saying goes: you get what you pay for. You get unwarranted aggression, dogs that attack their own handlers, unsafe and unreliable behavior, dogs that go into overdrive – simply put: JUNK.

When I was living in northern VA, I volunteered some of my free hours as a trainer/behaviorist for animal shelters and breed rescue groups. I helped the trainers of US Customs in Front Royal, VA, find good candidates for their detection dog program by identifying, selecting and performing foundation training for some of the surrendered dogs. These are usually young, high activity dogs that have the right traits for service but did not match their family situation. The dogs wanted to work – to do something – but the family didn’t have the time or energy to engage them in a constructive activity. The dogs became destructive; they end up in the shelter. Funny how I discovered a couple of them thought their name was NO. So, for cases like these, donated dogs are acceptable, but not for reasons of undue aggression.

After the 9-11 incident and the advent of cowardly terrorist bombings, there has been a worldwide shortage of Explosives Detection Dogs (EDD). Dog brokers try to churn out half-baked EDDs to meet the demand, or actually grab the opportunity to make easy money. Since I’m in the market for good EDDs for the upcoming APEC Summit here in Bangkok, I talked to some of these unscrupulous “businessmen”. Needless to say, they failed my initial survey. I shudder just thinking of the deadly consequences of their irresponsible scheme.

I hope they don’t prey on those police administrators looking for low-cost EDDs.

[TrishB]

Fred Al - that's not only disturbing, it's scarey!

So while watching the bottom line, a poorly trained / mal-temperamented dog is put into the line of EDD work, and then MISSES A BOMB?!?!

Whose fault is that? It probably won't be tracked down to the broker. I'd guess handler error, missing the item in the search grid, etc.

I like the idea that SAR dogs tend to be privately owned by citizens and only by making the grade do they get to be certified and participate. While they're at it - the police agencies don't have to pay them a dime for the dog, their upkeep or for the services of the dog / handler team!

I know that police K9's can't work that way - but wow - maybe they could gleen something from the SAR format to make it more reliable and accountable. *Please note that this is just my personal impression of the SAR programs I've very recently been introduced to.