josebrwn
9th March 2004, 15:44
The Ideal Handler
Out of one hundred police officers volunteering for duty with a canine unit, on the average less than ten are accepted.
That is, admittedly, the result of very tough selection criteria but it still indicates that some people are considered better suited for working with dogs than others.
We are not concerned here with men and women who are ill-tempered, reckless, cruel, very impatient or drug and alcohol addicts. None of them should be given custody of a dog.
With these exceptions, anyone who is determined to train a dog can attain a certain proficiency. Taking an intelligent approach, spending enough effort, and soliciting the help of available experts may indeed lead to outstanding training results. Some people will have to work very hard to reach this goal, others do it effortlessly if they have that certain flair for working with animals, and for teaching.
Determining factors are the personality of the handler, and his motivations.
The following categories are applicable for people who are actively participating in training.
** The easiest person to deal with is the true COMPETITOR. As a sportsman he is genuinely interested in improving his performance, and in comparing it with others. He works systematically and diligently, and he remains objective. The dog is his partner and as such receives proper attention and care. Suggestions offered to him are scrutinized and implemented if meaningful. In the long run, only talented, gifted dog handlers will remain in this category.
** The TROPHY HUNTER differs from the former group in that his primary goal is not the training by itself but the reward, the trophy, the certificate or the recognition, for successful trial completion. He will accept advice only if it guarantees better trial performance. The professional trainer may belong to this group.
** The FITNESS TYPE got into dog training because he considers it to be a meaningful alternative to jogging (etc) and he happened to have a suitable dog. He is easy-going and will casually follow up on suggestions. Competition is of lesser importance to him.
** The DOG LOVER has come to realize that his dog enjoys training. Anthropomorphism, or relating to the dog by human standards, is the big problem here and because of it the owner will reject many valuable training suggestions. A diplomatic and considerate trainer has the best chance to work with such a person. Trial performance, nevertheless, may be marginal.
** The DOG KEEPER supports the idea of the service dog, he may even work with such an agency. For him, dog training is a means to accomplish certain tasks with the help of the dog, and he will modify the concept so that is suites his training purpose.
** The DOG BREEDER wants to prove to the world that his bloodlines are top quality. Because of an intimate knowledge of his animals, he often accomplishes tasks that others had considered impossible.
The breeder is usually open to suggestions and willing to experiment with training suggestions, if it suits his purpose.
** The MILLIONAIRE typically starts out as a novice, but with an expensive, fully trained and titled dog usually imported from overseas.
He travels with his dog extensively and demands top honors everywhere. Objective judges and trainers are not always welcome, on occasion they are even met with hostility.
** The WARRIOR uses his dog as a weapon, often to compensate for his own personal insecurity. Unless there is definite hope to remodel this person's thinking, he should tactfully be removed from training. Dogs owned by such persons are conditioned to attack on command, even when the situation does not warrant it. Since the hostility is directed toward unsuspecting people, the image of the dog sport is discredited.
Everything considered, one should be looking for these qualities in a top handler:
open-mindedness
tolerance
willingness to learn and share
cooperation
patience
empathy
adaptability
common sense
authority
consistency
persistence
a well balanced mixture of gentleness and firmness
You got 'em all? Terrific!
Dietmar Schellenberg
TOP Working Dogs, A Training Manual
AAPR, 1994
Out of one hundred police officers volunteering for duty with a canine unit, on the average less than ten are accepted.
That is, admittedly, the result of very tough selection criteria but it still indicates that some people are considered better suited for working with dogs than others.
We are not concerned here with men and women who are ill-tempered, reckless, cruel, very impatient or drug and alcohol addicts. None of them should be given custody of a dog.
With these exceptions, anyone who is determined to train a dog can attain a certain proficiency. Taking an intelligent approach, spending enough effort, and soliciting the help of available experts may indeed lead to outstanding training results. Some people will have to work very hard to reach this goal, others do it effortlessly if they have that certain flair for working with animals, and for teaching.
Determining factors are the personality of the handler, and his motivations.
The following categories are applicable for people who are actively participating in training.
** The easiest person to deal with is the true COMPETITOR. As a sportsman he is genuinely interested in improving his performance, and in comparing it with others. He works systematically and diligently, and he remains objective. The dog is his partner and as such receives proper attention and care. Suggestions offered to him are scrutinized and implemented if meaningful. In the long run, only talented, gifted dog handlers will remain in this category.
** The TROPHY HUNTER differs from the former group in that his primary goal is not the training by itself but the reward, the trophy, the certificate or the recognition, for successful trial completion. He will accept advice only if it guarantees better trial performance. The professional trainer may belong to this group.
** The FITNESS TYPE got into dog training because he considers it to be a meaningful alternative to jogging (etc) and he happened to have a suitable dog. He is easy-going and will casually follow up on suggestions. Competition is of lesser importance to him.
** The DOG LOVER has come to realize that his dog enjoys training. Anthropomorphism, or relating to the dog by human standards, is the big problem here and because of it the owner will reject many valuable training suggestions. A diplomatic and considerate trainer has the best chance to work with such a person. Trial performance, nevertheless, may be marginal.
** The DOG KEEPER supports the idea of the service dog, he may even work with such an agency. For him, dog training is a means to accomplish certain tasks with the help of the dog, and he will modify the concept so that is suites his training purpose.
** The DOG BREEDER wants to prove to the world that his bloodlines are top quality. Because of an intimate knowledge of his animals, he often accomplishes tasks that others had considered impossible.
The breeder is usually open to suggestions and willing to experiment with training suggestions, if it suits his purpose.
** The MILLIONAIRE typically starts out as a novice, but with an expensive, fully trained and titled dog usually imported from overseas.
He travels with his dog extensively and demands top honors everywhere. Objective judges and trainers are not always welcome, on occasion they are even met with hostility.
** The WARRIOR uses his dog as a weapon, often to compensate for his own personal insecurity. Unless there is definite hope to remodel this person's thinking, he should tactfully be removed from training. Dogs owned by such persons are conditioned to attack on command, even when the situation does not warrant it. Since the hostility is directed toward unsuspecting people, the image of the dog sport is discredited.
Everything considered, one should be looking for these qualities in a top handler:
open-mindedness
tolerance
willingness to learn and share
cooperation
patience
empathy
adaptability
common sense
authority
consistency
persistence
a well balanced mixture of gentleness and firmness
You got 'em all? Terrific!
Dietmar Schellenberg
TOP Working Dogs, A Training Manual
AAPR, 1994