Can you give your own dog a arm sleeve bite Without a helper or decoy? - Page 1

I have a 7 month old German shepherd and i was told not to give him  a arm sleeve bite myself without a helper ,not even in play drive ?? 

Yes, if you are an experienced decoy and handler.  There is more to giving a dog a "bite" than just working it in prey or "play."  You have to be concerned with presentation, grip and how to work the dog properly.  If you do not know exactly what you are doing you can easily do more harm than good.  It is advisable for people new to bite work to not work their own dog. 

Jim

Listen to what Jim says.

Have you worked your puppy on a tug? Does he grip full...hard? Does he know how to counter? what tugs...bite pillows have you used so far? Has he been built up to where he's ready to bite a sleeve?

A lot of questions need to be answered before you can even consider trying to giving him a bite on a sleeve...Hopefully you've prepared him correctly...although I seriously doubt it because there are very few 7 month olds that are really ready for a full sleeve...

~Bob~

I could DO it, but I don't do it. Goes against what I want to see imprinted in my dog.

Jim, regardless of experience though, would you say that you still shouldn't do sleeve work with your own dog?  I hear controversy from different people....some see no problem with it, some are more along the lines of....It just doesn't seem right to the dog to bite the handler.  I'm kind of on the lines of the second one.  Obviously I'll do things with tugs and rags with the pup I'm getting, but I wouldn't do sleeve work myself with the pup when it can bite on the sleeve.

Apart from the fact that most 7 months old GSD's , in my opinion, are too young for the sleeve (I know there are different opinions), I would not let the dog bite me or use the sleeve on me, no matter what age my dog is. I agree, you can hurt your dog if you are not taught in helperwork. But besides that my dog needs to know that play (tug) and work (sleeve) are two different parts of the game and the dog has to know that he/she is never allowed to turn against me.

GSDguy,
It really depends on the dog, the handler, the relationship with the dog and the type of training.  Yes, I would and have worked my dogs on rags, tugs, pillows and sleeves.  For a sport dog it is really not a big deal with an experienced handler who can decoy.  I have worked my dogs with sleeves.  I do not do this with my Police K-9, although I have done it at demos when no one else was available to take a bite.  My dog has no handler aggression and no issues outing.   

I know some handlers that have done all of their own bitework to a SchH 1 level.  Wearing a sleeve and doing a H&B is not a big deal to get some really good barking.  The key is to make sure it is clear that the sleeve is prey and you are not pushing the dog into defense.  That is one way problems can arise, along with poor presentation, poor grips and the dog getting dirty.  Over the years I have seen many new owners with good intentions do more harm than good by trying to work their own dog. 

I have also noticed that my dogs do not bite the sleeve with the same intensity when I wear it as compared to a decoy wearing it.  Decoying for dogs is a skill that takes years to develop, there is a lot more to it than just putting a sleeve on your arm.    My advice is that if someone is not sure how to do it, just wait until you can find a good club or decoy.  There really is no big rush. 


JMO FWIW,

Jim

But besides that my dog needs to know that play (tug) and work (sleeve) are two different parts of the game and the dog has to know that he/she is never allowed to turn against me.

Most dogs figure out that it is all a game.  If there is ever any doubt that the dog will view it as serious bite work or has any handler aggression issues then I would not recommend it.  Giving a dog a bite on a sleeve will not cause it to turn against you, unless you do something crazy.  If that is the case there are other issues to work on and I think/hope the handler would have seen the signs.


 

Totally agree with Jim, especially prey - defence, if you are new to the game seek help from someone experienced.