Working Dog Obstacle Course - Page 2

Good video. There's not a lot of obstacle courses around that elaborate, it looks like fun.

Alright, alright.....let's just examine this for a minute....not the handler bonding, or the elaborately made course and video, or not giving the dog enough credit (that one took the cake). Let's examine an obstacle, just one.  How about that high wall, and just the part where he jumps down.  Now.... consider he's looking down and kicks off a (probably) wet, icy top.  His back foot needs traction, but guess what?  There's none.  Now he's going down and landing on wet, icy snow.  Again no traction.  But heh.....what the heck? (lol) 

 

Jenni I have to somwhat agree with you but the course was amazinh, that would cost a fortune to build, in wood alone much less labor Damn nice course.

I dont see the big deal about a dog jumping off a 6 ft wall. That was part of Schutzhund in olden days right? As far as ice and snow.......give me a break. Dogs are tough and if they can't handle stuff like that then they are not working dogs.

See this is the problem......no one should be that impressed by that video. Look at the pics in "The German Shepherd In Word and Picture". Look at those pics and look at the comments on this thread and honestly ask "have we progressed with the GSD as a working dog?". 

 Cop dogs...yeah, it's a nice course, but that's not really what we're talking about. I don't have the money to build one like that, but you'd be amazed how much you can accomplish w/your dog visiting various playgrounds;-)

LMH would shudder at some of the obstacles I've had my 100lb GSD on that weren't nearly that well-constructed and safe, LOL. And guess what? 7 years later, he's alive and well enough to tell the tales. Wet, icy snow? Oh, golly, no! Seriously??? I would put my relationship w/one of mine up against nearly anyone's...and I see no problem with letting him do things he's perfectly capable of doing. I admit I screamed the first time I saw my dog jump off a 15' pier onto hard ground. He looked at me like I'd lost my mind. We need to quit thinking they're so damn fragile, treat them like dogs, respect them for being dogs, and maybe we wouldn't have such poor excuses for "working dogs." We're not doing them any favors with this furbaby/keeptheminabubbleincasegodforbidtheyhurtthemselves crap.

I agree w/SSG- not to take away from the video, because that's great that they are out there doing that w/the dogs- but it's true- no one should be that impressed with that video. It's very sad that we are impressed by it, IMHO. 

I AM impressed by it.   That is a "sure-footed" dog -- especially going up and down the narrow, steep, snow-covered ladders.    Also lying, sitting, and turning on narrow boards --
reminded me of a gymnast on the hi-beam.  

if you don't train in the snow your dog might not work in the snow

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gEaZ-TecB3A

I think an obstacle course like the one in the video is a good test of a dogs nerve on different surfaces and it's ability to work at heights. I agree it isn't amazing and a good working dog should handle it, but I wouldn't dismiss it as no big deal.

Well, I am way more impressed with THAT Dog and THAT Trainer, than watching a dog "bite a sleeve and bark, and bark, and bark - bark & hold."    JMO.