How to confirm a "police" dog is legit - Page 1

Question for the K9 LEO's...   how would a prospective puppy buyer be able to confirm that a dog used for breeding actually is (or was) a bona fide K9?  Unfortunately some breeders may make claims that are not legit. 

It's easy enough to confirm if a dog actually is Schutzhund-titled.  Just say, "Show me the scorebook" and unless it's a forgery it's easy enough to confirm the dog's title and scores.

But how can you tell if a dog really is a K9?  Do they get the equivalent of a scorebook when they are certified?  Are there national certifying agencies?  Are there on-line databases with searchable records?  Do different states/municipalities have different standards?

I am NOT questioning the value of breeding to a K9 vs. a sport dog.  Just trying to figure out how to research.
Thanks for the info.

Yvette

Usually the handler has a graduation picture taken with the dog. I'm not entirely sure on actual "certification" paperwork for the dog, but the
human should have some sort of paperwork, certification etc from an agency such as NAPWDA, USPCA etc... I'd think there should be some
form of papertrail.

Melissa

http://www.pedigreedatabase.com/german_shepherd_dog/dog.html?id=536034

This is a graduation photo taken at the end of training for 2 of my dogs. Also, some dogs have trading cards too :)

Melissa

As K-9's actually become Officers...There should be some paperwork that's somewhere...But who would have it and can you get it or get to see it is another question...
Just like any other Officer and when they're added to that particular dept...
I  would think that either the actual Officer that was teamed up with the K-9 and/or the Dept itself would have paperwork...

~Bob~

Unfortunately photos are just too easy to photoshop to be relied upon as proof of anything.

I know a few K9 LEO's post on this message board.  Hopefully one of them will shed some light. 

It's also important to know if the "documents" supplied by the breeder or owner are legit.  Anybody with a word processor could whip up a fake letter or certificate from a local police department.

The key is independent verification.

For example, if I see a Schutzhund scorebook that looks fishy I could contact the host club, the judge, or USCA, etc. to find out if dog XX actually participated in trial XX and got X X X scores. 

Another example, If someone claims a dog has OFA Excellent hips, this also can be easily confirmed by a search on the OFA web site itself.  I think even I could make a fake OFA rating certificate if I tried, just with a word processor or photoshop. 

Yvette

From a retired law enforcement K9 handler from Monroe, Mi .............. 4 dogs on the road from 1987 thru 2002 ....I know what you are asking ! .......... is quite easy each state has standards YES ................. although is simple ............... ask where the dog is on the road at and call the jurisdiction to see IF the dog is working he road .... YES many phonies out there ........................ Regards .... Greg

To be honest with you....If they are an active working K-9 they most likely can not be used for breeding.  They can be certified though in detection, tracking and protection.  Many people breed with them right before they become certified because once working a PD will not allow it.

Hey Yvette,
How are you???  
Yes, each state should have a certifying agency that works under the guidelines of a national organization like NAPWDA or the USPCA.  I am often amazed by the dog owners that I meet that have "police K-9's."  I have learned some on here that talk about about their "working K-9" or their dog is "certified" as a Patrol dog. Most really do not have true working patrol dogs, but will say they do and advertise their dog as a "certified patrol dog."  

Certifying a dog as a "patrol dog" is really not much more difficult than titling a dog.  However, working a dog as a Patrol dog and actually working the street is a whole lot different.  PM or email me if you like and I will gladly help you figure out if the dog is certified and actually works as a Police K-9.  First thing I would do is verify the owner or handler is actually a Police officer.  

Jim

Here in sweden the title policedog is registred i the kennel club online database, as is other results like HD/ED and scores on competitions and mentalitytests, the certification is also the same for the whole country, guess this also is true for other smaller european countries. Actuall quite many policedogs are used in the breedings here.

You have many agencies now let the officer own the dog or should I say the officer comes in with the dog that is "mostly" trained and then onto "cert" such as myself back in the day .....  .................. such as in my case in my post listed above ...... but YES if the agency owns the dog it will not happen ......................  Greg

Agree with Greg, some agencies will allow the hander to own the dog. I know this from personal experience with the dog
that I recently donated, as well as a dog donated a few years ago.

Melissa