How Do German's Get a SchIII by 20 months of Age - Page 1

I would like to know how a young  dog in Germany, that is say 20 months old - maybe even a tad older, becomes a Schutzhund III so fast.   I do take in consideration  that it has to be an exceptional dog.  But there are so many 20 month olds that obtain SCHIII at this age.  In USA as well.  But mainly I am concern with the German philosophy

In Germany - when a person gets a new puppy - what is the steps that you start their training. I have had so many different view points on raising a pup.  Some say let them be a pup dont start until they are 6 months - or older - others say start right away - and I know all dog's are different ---

When we talk about training this exception pup to reach SchIII at 20 months - what kind of training do you start with this pup...I want details.  I just don't see how the philosophy of the "Let them Be Puppies" in the beginning would make a SchIII by this age...

Please advise.

HappyDay

I know somebody that has accomplished that.  With the right dog and right handler it's very possible.  I would take the dog I know of in a heartbeat. 

Remember the 2006 BSP winner, Caro, was a 2-year old.

Look at the motivational training methods and videos.  Many very young puppies are doing all sorts of happy willing OB.  This doesn't mean they still can't be puppies.

This video of a 7 week old puppy always amazed me. Good training techniques go a long way.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KvKecC9_LpI

Here's another video similar.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ygj6DTgEWkI&NR=1

I purchased my German Male at the age of one year. His Breeder/Trainer allowed him to be a puppy and have fun. He did no training at all at this point, he did not even sit on command. But by 20 months of age he had gained his SchH3

Our Onyx was a SchH1 at 18 months with 276 points, a SchH2 at 19 months with 276 points (coincidence, lol) and a SchH3 with 282 points at  20 months of age. Looking at his scores, I can tell you that he was in the mid- to high nineties in tracking and protection, and the mid to high 80s in obedience. I attribute that to his youth and the fact that he was scheduled to come home to the U.S.. So, he had to finish his titles as soon as possible. But that has nothing to do with his capabilities. His focus is awsome. Onyx spent a whole year in Germany from June 2008 to June 2009. So, his foundation was laid early.
His two older halfbrothers were both BSP participants at 3 years and 3 months of age, with Hutch being last year's German Vice Universal Sieger. The other one, Hudson, is now in the U.S. and trains with Gary Hanrahan - Gary has him on his webpage. Hutch and Hudson too were titled to SchH3 early, so they could concentrate on qualifying for the BSP and the FCI Qualification Trial in Germany.
It is not that unusual to title a dog early. I know a lot of German people who practically live on the training field. Right after work, they go there for a few hours in the evening. While people usually get titles on showline dogs early to continue on, some working people do the same for other reasons.

Those videos were great!  I never imagined you could get such a young pup to be so responsive as that.    The pup in the 2nd video seem to have a really good attention span.
I can't get mine to stop eating dirt!
So, how do they do it with pups that young?  Are they just exceptional?  Do they skip a feeding?  And, if they skipped a feeding don't you think the pup would just keep moving for the food?

John:

Please give some detail on your training - what age did you start - and what did you do from 8 wks to 6 months.