Dual training a dog questions - Page 3

Depending on where you get your service dog, many organizations will NOT allow a service dog in the same home with another dog. My sister experienced this when she was going to get a hearing dog for her deaf daughter. Ive read this on other service dog sights as well.

I say this......if you bought the dog to be a sch dog and he/she is of sound mind, then choose that venue. The dog will most likely also be a good family member and also help your niece when she needs the dog. That trainer you mentioned Im guessing isnt cheap and it may cost more to train the dog then to buy one already trained. I look for certain things in a service dog and sch dogs something completely different. Im sure his dog was awesome as you mentioned that he has literally spent hours doing. But remember not all dogs have that gift. The only way your going to know is wait it out and train. I wouldnt be counting on the school district though allowing the dog at school.

Yes it can be done but need the right dog and the right training and the right handler too. SAR groups will not accept a dog that does bitework. But if you do not feel the need to be honest then this too can be done . I would personally not feel comfortable with a child handling a PPD.

SOME SAR groups will not accept a dog that does bitework......was training with Fema certified urban SAR dog that is national level Sch competitor with the dog.

I an thinking what I may do is to take my current dog use her as the service dog and buy an already trained female sch1 dog that has potential to go higher. I am supposed to take the dog to the trainer Friday and after discussing it with him again will make a decision

I strongly urge you to contact your child's school and get pre approval for your child to be able to bring a service dog.

I already have approval for the child to have a service dog

Well, wow, you sure have a lot to teach your dog, high hopes.

The trainer will not be cheap. Most of the time, not always but most of the time a title costs about 2K and up. That is if the dog breezes through it ant there are no issues and she can do it like a charm with good points. Then in between, she needs to learn to be child service dog, which requires another set of skills. And on top of that SAR work. That is a lot to ask of one puppy.

I know I say a GSD should be versatile but one also has to admit that even the better dogs kinda have their limits. If a service work is important to you for your handicapped daughter, I would have a good dog, the best dog (if your female is good, the you found her), do the job suited for service work. I know people in my area who do this for free, they train service dogs for free, they have very good track record of doing a very good job. They of course rely on people donating puppies to them and they breed their own doodles (service dog is a service dog, no matter how crossed it is) and they have a volunteer group that raises the puppies and prepares them for further training.

They pick a specific dog, in my last litter, none of the puppies would work based on their criteria..one nearly made it but then a SAR group snatched her instead (service group wanted a male, so they decided to wait for a good male). What I am trying to say is, it takes a special dog that will have the primary bond with your daughter. A dog that will be with her all the time and that will live to work for her.
So my opinion is, yes, I think specializing your girl for service work would be the best. You can get a puppy of as you mentioned already titled nice dog for yourself. I replied on your puppy question in the other post and import puppies are cheaper but they don;t come with any guarantee.

Good luck and let us know how it all works out for you.

So you have an already trained service dog?

Me? nope I know an organization that does but they work locally, I only donate good dogs (when I have a puppy), sometimes evaluate dogs they have questions about. But myself I am not directly involved in training service dogs. I wish I was but darn, that really takes a lot of time.

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