Schutzhund Vs Personal Protection Training For Your Dog
3 min read(Note: Before reading any further I want to make it clear that this article was not meant to offend anyone. I have done research on the topic discussed and am providing you all with the results of the research. This topic is controversial and the matters can be sensitive. I welcome everyone’s opinions and comments in the section below at the end of the article.)
In a previous article I talked about the importance of having your dog trained to remain silent and to speak and how it can benefit you in a survival situation. In this article I am going to go in-depth about the difference in Schutzhund training and how it is different from a personal protection trained dog. (PPD)
Schutzhund is a German word for “Protection dog.” Not to be confused with a personal protection dog. It is a sport that was created in Germany as a breed suitability test for the German Shepard Dog in the 1900’s. The test would determine if the dog displayed the appropriate characteristics of a good working dog. Today it is used as a sport in America for many different breeds.
Before a dog can compete for Schutzhund competition training he must pass a traffic-sure companion dog test. This test basic obedience around strange people, strange dogs, traffic, and loud noises. A dog that exhibits excessive fear, distractibility, or aggression cannot pass the test and cannot go on to be trained in Schutzhund training. Much like the test given to dogs that are to be trained for personal protection.
There are a lot of videos that show Schutzhund training where you see the dog attack a protective sleeve on someone, which can be impressive if you do not know what you are looking for. This is where the two types of training differ. A dog trained in Schutzhund training is not trained to target the weapon hand first that the attacker is using and can end up seriously hurt or even dead. They are specifically trained to attack the sleeve. A PPD should never be trained in this manner. A PPD should be trained to attack the hand/wrist holding the weapon first since this is the fastest way to disarm the attacker. A well-trained PPD would then continue to inflict a number of bites in the arms and legs until told to stop by the owner.
In my research on the subject it has been advised by MANY trainers that one should not have a dog trained in Schutzhund if the purpose is for the dog to be used for protection. They all said that most of these dogs would not know how to react without the sleeve to attack because they have not been trained outside of the equipment yard or with any other scenarios besides the sleeve.
Below are a few videos that show exactly what the two types of training of can do for you and for your dog.
Will your Untrained Dog Protect You?
Schutzhund Dog Training;
Personal Protection Dog Training;
In the two videos you can clearly see that the dog trained in Schutzhund never goes for the arm with the weapon, only the arm with the sleeve. Even after being hit repeatedly. In the PPD video the dog always goes for the hand with the weapon. Which would you want protecting you? Both dogs are amazingly well trained, but they are trained for different purposes and it is important to know the difference if you are considering having your dog trained for protection. Always make sure the person training your dog is certified to do so.
Being prepared also means being able to protect yourself and you may not always have a gun or weapon within reach. If you have dogs then why not consider using them for personal protection as well as for the love bug of the family? They will enjoy it and you will feel more secure knowing you have a form of protection that will allow you to get to your weapon if your under attack.
Keepin It Spicy,
Cari Schofield, aka Jalapeño Gal
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I have trained dogs for protection for more than 25 years. That includes personal protection dogs, schutzhund sport, and police service dogs. I have also competed in schutzhund (SchH) sports at high levels (national championships, world championships). While your assessments are generally correct, you misunderstand the big picture.
For example, if I train you to dance the polka, and spend many years teaching all the steps of being a great polka dancer, will you know anything about martial arts? Of course not. This analogy is the same with dog training.
A SchH dog is trained to ONLY grip (bite) the sleeve. Because it is a sport, this is the only way to ensure the safety of the decoy (the guy who gets bit). This does not mean you can never teach a dog to bite anywhere else. It is as simple as doing training with a hidden sleeve. The dog cannot see the sleeve because it is smaller and hidden under clothing. The dog can also be taught to target the weapon hand.
So just as I could teach you martial arts after I have taught you to polka, so can I teach a SchH dog to attack the weapon hand when a sleeve is not present.
Now this is all dependent on the dog’s temperament, of course. Because some dogs are not suitable for personal protection that are suitable for SchH. That is because most SchH dogs are working in prey drive. That means his thought process is, See the rabbit, chase the rabbit, bite the rabbit. And the rabbit is the sleeve. To train personal protection the dog must realize he is in a fight with a man, and work out of defense drive and aggression. These are much different drives than prey. And some dogs are not born with adequate defense drive and aggression. They make fine SchH dogs, but could not do police work.
In summary I have trained SchH dogs for police work and personal protection for years. It all boils down to the dog and its genetic make up. If you want a dog that will protect you in a real situation, do not get any American AKC show dog nor any German show dog. Dogs bred for show will excel in that characteristic, dogs bred to work (tracking, protecting, herding) will excel in those characteristics first).
Thank you for your reply! 🙂 I understand what your saying, but I also think your assessment of AKC show dogs is incorrect as well. I personally own AKC and UKC show dogs and both are more than capable of showing, working and protection. (American Pit bull Terriers) I think what it boils down to is what the dog is capable of and the training you put into it. For myself, I would not want to spend the time and money in SchH training only to have to retrain them in personal protection. (or vice versa) I love dogs 🙂
JG