owner and dig - Page 1

Can someone please tell me is it possible for an owner be able to teach his gsd protection work by himself.
Thank you

No!! You need a supporting, knowledgeable cast, i.e., helpers, handlers, video/picture
monitors, community dog forum members, agitators, geez I can go on. No man is
an Island! 

You might want to reword your sentence construction. Syntax, content
and context seems to work better in understanding the true meaning of written
communication; And thus, a better answer and/or response you need.

ddr gsd, regarding the second part of your reply: I can assure you that when I have to use a translation application to compose a sentence in any one of the five and a half million languages I don't speak, read or write, my syntax, content and context are far less well-constructed than this question posted by BlkZozo. Your criticism of the query's format is rude.

BlkZozo, it's not the best choice in the world, as it can be confusing for the dog if his own handler and owner is also the object of his display of aggression and defense. I do know of people who have done this out of necessity, having no one to work with even as little as once a month, and who have been able to title the dog at the club-trial level, but it took them probably twice as long to get the dog trial-ready, and none of these few have gone beyond the basic SchH1 title. 

Is your goal with your dog to obtain an IPO or other working title with him, or do you just want to teach the dog bitework for personal protection purposes?  The first requires much more attention to form and detail, since it follows an established pattern; the latter primarily requires that you teach outstanding control so no one is inadvertently injured. If you want to title the dog, at some point you will find it necessary to train with others, especially if you have no previous experience yourself.
BUT--you can work on things like targeting on a bite wedge, reinforcing good grip form, and that sort of thing on your own *if you teach yourself how to do these things*.  Many of the top trainers have created videos and DVDs that you can purchase and study to learn how to lay the foundation for your dog. The best option for someone who has no access to anyone experienced they can train with regularly, IMO, is to attend some seminars, by trainers with excellent credentials for their teaching ability as well as their handling, as an observer. Explain your situation, and take videos, notes and photos you can refer back to repeatedly; ask questions when possible. See if you can save up for a private training session with an experienced trainer, and work on the bitework, and in the meantime concentrate on the dog's obedience and tracking while working on your own.  If your dog has the necessary drives and instincts genetically, he won't lose them if you wait on adding bitework on a man until you have someone to work with you, though--better to do nothing or at least very little in the protection until then, then to teach bad habits or ruin the dog's confidence through bad training in that venue.
 

Hexe - Your grabbing (Hot?) AIR, Dog Speak. My statement stands, carry on... .

You're correct. Your statement stands as the embodiment of ignorance and arrogance.

It's certainly possible for an owner to train his own dog in protection, without the aid of anyone else. It's not likely to yield the best results, true, but to say it's impossible shows you to be an ass.

 

I see you cannot grab your own pompous flatus.

ddrgsd, for someone who was so critical of the OP's syntax,
your own leaves a lot to be desired !


I would normally be agreeing with you, in principle, that training
a PP dog on one's lonesome is a terrible idea & bound to failure;
but Hexe's answer has made me think again.  I can see that if
the OP took the steps Hexe outlines (properly) they might be
able to do it.

IPO training takes getting along with at least one other person! Posting on the Data base, does not require getting along with anybody. A solid club makes it even more enjoyable. Get involved and then evolve. 

Michael Ellis video .. preparing your dog for the helper .. you can do a lot by yourself .. at some point you will need a real helper but what you don't need is a bunch of club idiots wearing a sleeve and giving you bad advice.  Starting a young dog in protection too early is a common mistake with club helpers.  Do as much as possible on your own because club training involves 4 hours of waiting and watching for you with your dog in a crate in your car.  Maybe you get 15 minutes of actual work for you and your dog on the field. 

BlkZozo, it is possible to train the protection phase on your own, but not advisable. You can do all the prey work yourself, but trying to bring out any defense or aggression from your dog creates conflict. If you're wanting the dog trained for real world scenarios, then you are the person that you want the dog to protect, not to engage. Many dogs already re-direct drive/aggression back to the handler and you definitely don't want to be fighting an assailant and the dog at the same time.

Bubba, if you believe "4 hours of waiting and watching" as a negative, then I believe you are being a bit selfish. As part of a club, you could be using that time waiting to watch and learn, or to possibly support the other club members. After all, while you are on the training field, they are in that same situation. There's nothing more frustrating than spending 20 minutes with one person working on something, when I have to spend 20 minutes with the next person going over the same exact thing because they weren't paying attention. Club training time isn't time to focus on one single person, everyone should be working towards the same goal. If you need to be the center of attention, a dog club isn't the place for you. I'm assuming this is why your personal dogs are not being titled!