Testing Police Dogs - Page 1

I really don't know where to start but do you consider a dogs age when testing it for patrol? I had a disagreement yesterday with a department supervisor and I just want to hear from other K-9 handlers/trainers.
It was about the stake out test. I have no problem with this test but I had a problem with the way it was done this time. All the dogs were between 10-24 months old. So we had very young dogs. He staked the dogs out in the woods and after 15 minutes he walked in very straight and casual. No threat at all, no staggering, just like a friendly person. All the dogs were suspicious but didn't see a threat, some dogs were wagging their tails because he looked like he wanted to play and pet them. Then he stopped right in front of the dogs and jumped at them and yelled. Needless to say most of the very young dogs got startled. He said they were failures. I asked him why he was not acting suspicious and why he expects a 10 months old dog to react like a mature dog. His answer was pretty much that I didn't know what I was talking about. 

What were the breeds, I have witnessed and tested many many Mals that were ready for police training from 10 months  and upward. It is very very rare for a GS to be able to go to police academy under 15 months!!

To expect a mature dog reaction at 10 months is indeed stupid. Yes, some Malinois will light up, but, thats just prey drive kicking in when they saw movement. I will not consider a dog to start patrol dog school until its 18 months old and yes, I know there are exceptions, but, to bet an officer's life on a 13 month dog is something I at least,  am not willing to do. I am not surprised he failed the dogs...most of them know as much about selection as I do about the space program.
 

I have so many good departments testing dogs and they would never do this. They see what they can get out of a dog as long as he/she has the basics. I import many dogs and not all dogs make it but I can usually tell who will make it and who wont. I have never seen anything like it.  It is hard for me to describe his movement as he appeared to be a very friendly stranger that turned into a crazy person in a split second. To me any dog would jump at that moment. 

What an idiot. I know of a few in this area (NC) who this behavior wouldn't surprise me one bit. How can you expect a 10 month old GSD pup to show mature dog behavior? I've had one nasty Mali who was ready for patrol at 10 months, one GSD. The rest were all 18 months to 2 yrs for patrol. 10 months for narc. I wouldn't sell this guy a dog period. If that is how he tests, just think of what regular training will be. Hes going to ruin a good dog, then come back to you for a refund.

PM me a name?? Thanks.


Melissa

I would also appreciate a PM'ed name, if you wouldn't mind. A rescue group near me wants to occasionally pull dogs from shelters to be tested for suitability....

Yes, I have had a few very young dogs that were very strong. I tried my best to explain to him that he can't test a young pup the same way he would test a mature dog with a lot of training. I said EVERY dog is different. After he was done with his first test he moved on to trying to take inside bites on a suit. I explained again that some dogs have not been worked on a suit or on any inside bites. I explained that some of these young green dogs are still in bite development stages only for him to tell me that I don't know what I am talking about. He was asking about some more dogs I had but I had to tell him that I do not have any dogs for him and wished him the best of luck. I should have known wen he contacted me and said he wanted KNPV type dogs but would refuse a titled IPO dog.

While I would also not want a titled IPO dog to use as a police dog, I do prefer KNPV dogs because they are geared more toward police work through their training, I do have a problem with testing 10 month olds the same way you would test a 2-3 year old dog.
 

I have to say that I have seen many IPO dogs that became excellent K-9's. It all depends on the dog.

And I will agree with you. While I have no interest in a points dog to train as a police dog, there are IPO dogs, who because of certain issues that would be welcomed in the police world, are not very conducive to scoring points.
I have seen low scoring dogs that because of control issues could not be made into an ideal sport dog and were sold as police dog candidates and made excellent working dogs.