Does anyone compete in Schutzhund?

Question

The behaviorist I spoke to about my dog suggested that I start working with him on Schutzhund training. I'm trying to find out as much as I can about the training required, organizations, clubs and basically everything related that I can. I most likely would never compete however if it improves his behavior I'm all for it.

illkeep.asking Keep being a point wh***. It's not truly a behavioral problem, I also am not the one that caused the problem.

As for the schutzhund training, it's not about correcting a behavior so much as it's for giving him a "job" he enjoys and is good at.

Oh, and it's the behaviorist that works with the sheriff's task force. My dog passed his temperament test with only a few issues that were able to be worked through. He gave me some training ideas and is going to check back in two months.

Answer 1

Before we delve too deep into this, what kind of problems does your dog have? It would help if I knew so the problem can be addressed better.
Sch is a dog sport that involves obedience, tracking and protection. The obedience is very strict and the tracking, depending on what level you compete in, can be challenging for some dogs, but, it is NOT the real thing, it is food based tracking. The protection part is 70% prey drive oriented and 20% play with the rest being some defense. It is also a game to most dogs with the right temperament. The dog wants the sleeve which he looks at as "prey" and will run around with it and even bring it back to you so he can get another bite!!
There are many Sch clubs across the US. Look under Sch USA and find one near you. Do be careful though because some clubs have their own politics and games they like to play and some don't. Good luck to you.

Answer 2

Hi there, thanks for your interest in our sport. It is fun, challenging, and rewarding. I do compete in SchH. It does not matter your dog is a Labrador, the sport is open to any breed that can do the work. Certainly there are Labradors titled in SchH, along with other non-traditional breeds.

The best thing to do is to go out to some SchH clubs and watch their training. If you can watch some trials too, this will help you see what the finished product looks like. There are still many different philosophies surrounding SchH training, ranging from the harsh, yank and crank style training, to the almost 100% motivational styles. Our club trains motivationally, and our goal is to have fun with our dogs while pursuing titles.

The most important thing I can say about SchH is that it is a huge time commitment. No one really dabbles in SchH, although here in Canada you can pursue obedience and tracking titles without participating in the protection phase. This still requires a significant commitment on the part of the handler.

I also compete in agility, and it is just an awesome sport. Dogs love agility, and pretty much any dog can do it, unlike SchH. This would be a great sport to get into, and it requires much less of a time commitment to be successful than SchH.

Answer 3

A dog has to pass a temperament test, must have a good temperament to even train in Schutzhund. If you are having behavioral issues, I can't imagine that a behaviorist would recommend Schutzhund..

I think you should find a new behaviorist.. That's a really silly suggestion on their part. Bad behavior doesn't belong on a Sch field.

Answer 4

If the dog is having issues with behavior, Schutzhund should be the last thing to think about!!!! A dog doing Schutzhund needs to be very stable and self confident. Join an obedience club first and start with AKC obedience!!!

Answer 5

I would start with obedience and agility before Schutzhund. If the dog has some problem behavior, even if it's not severe, schutzhund is not the way to go. Most clubs require strict temperment testing before they will allow you to involve your dog. If you are still interested, get him into basic and intermediate obedience training before exploring schutzhund, and explore agility classes for fun and to give him the "job" he needs.

Answer 6

I've never done any Schutzhund work with a dog.

I do, however, work with my dogs. My favorite "give the dog a job" things are agility and trick training. Agility gives them the physical exercise and training tricks plays with their brains.

This week my dogs are earning their kibble by following a laser pointer to a target. (its remedial training as they did it quite well a few months ago but I let it lag and now have to re-train before we can move to the next piece of the puzzle).

Edit: Tony.. you crack me up!!! I wonder if I'd get a response if I mentioned I have Bernese and a Samoyed!

Answer 7

I've contacted four schutzhund clubs in my "area". I never got a single email or phonecall returned :)
Perhaps because I mentioned that my girl is a Lab :))))