I like this dog. Thoughts? - Page 3

VM,
It's nice to hear your dog is doing so well.  I will add that the sleeve, suit,and hidden sleeves are all equipment.  A good decoy can agitate the dog with out equipment.  Dogs that are not equipment fixated will spit out a sleeve and go for the decoy if the decoy pushes them after giving a bite.  The best way to tell is through muzzle fighting, then it's the decoy and dog and no equipment.  A dog that will engage with real aggression in a muzzle and fight hard will bite for real.  

I only like hidden sleeves for the first time,  than the dog knows the decoy is wearing a sleeve.  We just got about 40' of firehouse and will make some hidden sleeves out of that tomorrow for the Police K9's.  It won't smell like jute and the dogs won't expect it the first time or two.  Then we'll change to something else.  It is going to hurt, really hurt and I will be very bruised.  But, I won't be as bruised as the guy that takes my dog.  It will be good training for the dogs. 

What would you have said if the bi dog in the OP had ignored the sleeve and tried to go for the man? My girl often comes into the blind slightly dirty like that too.

When I started my dog in SchH he would have bit the decoy in the chest if the decoy tried to correct him with the stick for being dirty.  He would have gone right over the sleeve and nailed the decoy in the chest near the shoulder or the face.  My dog was never dirty on the sleeve, he always got dirty on the decoy.  It was unsettling at times for new decoys. 

Jim

Slamdunc, thanks. That's good info. Actually I don't care if my girl knows now that there's a hidden sleeve; I'm just glad she was willing to bite before she knew one was there! We will never be competing, just nice quiet titling, so that's good enough for me.

It would really be interesting to try the muzzle fighting, though! It's pretty fun to have a dog that keeps surpising.

Its an interesting dog, would like to see him with a different helper with less help. Would show better whats "show and puff".

Its an interesting dog, would like to see him with a different helper with less help. Would show better whats "show and puff".

That is well said...and I agree 100%
Dog caught my eye but I see conflict in him that needs ironed out.
Interesting video nonetheless.

there is no defense there in that first video, there is no fight, there is no civil, none of that. all prey, all helper working hard for the dog.

Slow escape, slow long bite.  Average dog, NOT a prey monster as previously noted.  A prey monster would come much better in pursuit and carry through on the long.  Grips are average to good.  The "help" being offered by the helper is to actually teach the dog to counter the escape by drawing his weight back and in the case of the escape bite, torque the body of the "escaper".  Tapping the feet or using the lash of the whip causes the dog to use his body to control the arm, it has nothing to do with building aggression or putting the dog into defense.  It has become a popular technique to make the actual "stopping the man" of the escape bite become "stopping the man".  If you notice the subtle bouncing of the helper while the dog is up off of the ground, you will see it is in reaction to the barking of the dog.  The dog barks and is rewarded by movement of the helper.  The only thing in this video that would tap into the dog's defense would be the fact that he was up off of the ground on a somewhat slippery unstable surface, if you notice the bark was somewhat deeper and more serious.  If I were evaluating the dog for myself, I would have stopped watching after the escape bite.