Protection Training

[jksjkc]

On the instinct issue, we all know that all dogs have protective instinct. But our dogs live in loving homes, they have been socialized to death, tought not to bite anything and even chew only certain things. Thats why i do not trust that my dogs long supressed insticnt will come alive immidiately on the spot if someone came out of the blue with a knife to robb me.

You and I are completely socialized, live in loving homes and are not taught to kill or hurt............yet if someone touched my kids, or any part of "my pack/family" you best believe I'd do everything I can to kill or hurt. Natural instinct of a dog will do the same. Civilians do not need "attack" dogs. Let's leave that up to the police.
"Attack" dogs are not for your typical owner. People who train their dogs this way, who have no idea what they are doing, end up being attacked themselves by their own pet.
It's your boxer's love for you that will spark any kind of protection.

 

[KMB's BabyB]

My previous boxer was loving and kind and it seemed would never hurt a soul but believe me if she ever though her family was in danger she said it. It only happened twice in the four years I owned her but I was convinced that she would have laid down her life for me and my family. The best command we ever taught her was"Thank you. Leave it" Teach your dog a drop it or leave it command and don't embroil yourself in the legalities of owning an "attack dog". Even if you only teach the watch command the point is that they don't know that your dog won't attack and you can still be sued. I owned a collie that I gave to a person who needed a companion. This collie bit someone who had broken the glass in the door and was trying to break in. Not only did they get off for shooting the "vicious" dog in self defense but they got their medical bills payed for by my friend. True story! I would hate for you to be in that situation.

 

[douma]

Even if you only teach the watch command the point is that they don't know that your dog won't attack and you can still be sued. I owned a collie that I gave to a person who needed a companion. This collie bit someone who had broken the glass in the door and was trying to break in. Not only did they get off for shooting the "vicious" dog in self defense but they got their medical bills payed for by my friend. True story! I would hate for you to be in that situati

Here in Greece the same law applied and i blame the authorities that don't inform people and allow protection training,i really can't understand this!
You can see on tv police and military dogs in perfect training contition and people believe that it's so easy to own a protection training dog
I have heard many stories about these dogs that attacked a person,it's not easy to own a dog training to be guard.Dog is a dog and never know how she/he would behave when believe that there is a danger
I took this photo during a dog show, http://photobucket.com/albums/a211/savra/?action=view&current=a79caa1a.jpg he is a military dog,and they said that these are very dangerous dog and never allowed off leash without a muzzle close to people,if it was so easy and a command was enough to stop them,there wasn't a reason to put on a muzzle

 

[gojoe]

Naturally your Guardian, no training needed!!!

I think it is irresponsible to protection train your Boxer if you are not a law enforcement official or a professional trainer yourself.

I am 100% confident that if a situation arose where Domino thought that i was in harm's way he would protect us. As far as he's concerned I am the leader of his pack and those natural familial instincts don't just disappear. I think training your dog to be aggressive, especially if you have children in the house is a bad idea.

I had rescued a boxer from shelter and had to have him put down for aggression issues. It was the hardest think i'd ever been through, he was aggressive towards CHILDREN!!! I know they are our beloved pets, but they are also still ANIMALS and as much as we'd like to con ourselves into believing it...we are NOT in COMPLETE CONTROL...EVER.

It is a peaceful co-existence we've formed with our pets, it doesn't make any sense to destroy that balance by teaching aggressive behaviour, even if it is for 'show'.

I live in a city neighborhood with not so nice people here and there, i never thought of my dog as 'protection'. For protection i always carry a cell phone, am cautious and wary of those around me, don't walk too close to doorways, curtail walking down dark alleys or in the evening alone...COMMON SENSE every day things. If i am with my Dog, i do the SAME things...just with my dog...and as friendly as he is, occassionally he will let out a rumble or growl when certain people walk by, i curb the behaviour by cupping his mouth in my hand and saying no bark, but i do heed his warning and will usually move away from the unacceptable stranger. I trust his 'judgement'.

Sorry for my rant. After unkowingly walking into a situation and dealing with the stress of an animal who had been previously trained to be aggressive and had to be euthanized i have no tolerance for anyone who wants to encourage that type of behaviour.

 

[Tucker's Mom]

I have to agree - no protection training is needed. Dogs are extremely loyal creatures - especially boxers. I always saw myself as Tucker's protector, but I found out quickly I was wrong. I was walking Tucker a few weeks back, and I don't live in the best neighborhood. I passed a guy walking the other way, and he turned and started to follow us. It was starting to get dark, and Tucker noticed I was tense. He stopped, turned toward the guy, crouched into attack mode and showed the most fierce face/growl/bark I have ever seen/heard on a boxer. The guy stopped dead in his tracks, turned, and walked the other way. Once Tucker saw that he was leaving, he looked up at me, smiled, and started the wiggle butt dance. You see, boxers truly love their people. They won't allow anyone to hurt the ones they love. I saw it that night, and I've seen it when wrestling with my bf. Tucker actually bit him one night because he thought I was being harmed.

And, to be completely honest, if you want protection, get a bottle of pepper spray or whatever is legal in your area. After all, do you really want to risk your baby getting hurt? Even if he/she doesn't attack - just growls, who's to say someone won't pull a weapon and hurt him/her? To me, training a dog for protection is like training your 5 year old son to jump in front of a speeding bullet. But, that's just my opinion.

 

[My Calla]

I am not sure if Calla would protect me in a sticky situation or not, but if she didn't, I surely would not blame her. She is the most friendly and loving dog and being mean is not in her nature. Last Friday, after our Pet Lovers trip, a man and a woman approached me in the parking lot wanting money. They kept me tied up for about 5 minutes and I had already put Calla in my truck. The man asked me if she was a pit and I just responded "no"--I didn't give her breed. Calla kidney beaned at that couple until I thought she was going to dislocate a hip. I would love for her to growl or show some sign of protection towards me, but it is not in her nature. Maybe when she gets a little older she will be more protective or maybe she didn't sense danger (I will never know). She was bought to be my pet, my baby---that is her only responsiblity is to love me back. She will protect if it is in her nature. If I wanted an attack dog, I would have gotten an attack dog. Plus, with her being on the petite side, no one would really be all that frightened by her, I don't think!!

 

[My Samson]

MyMoose, how old is your dog and how well trained is he/she currently?

My brother is a dog trainer and can protection train dogs so I have a little knowledge in this area. Protection training is very serious and depends a lot on the dog's temperament and current obedience training. In order to have your dog protection trained, he/she must be completely obedience trained (especially off-leash) before you can even take this into consideration. My brother actually had someone call him about protection training who had a pit bull puppy that was only 8 weeks old! Your dog should be at 'adult' status. When he protection trains, he also uses german commands so no 'common' word is said that could potentially be said around the dog to set him/her off.

I'm not here to pass judgement on you - everyone has the right to train their dog how they see fit...I just want to make sure you have all the proper training in line before protection training your dog. Any professional trainer who is willing to protection train a dog should take the dog's current obedience into consideration before starting protection training - so keep that in mind while pursuing a trainer.