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18 April, 2022

Signs Your Dog Needs Retraining

Ensuring they are properly trained is one of the most important responsibilities owners have to their dogs. Training not only helps dogs and humans engage and communicate with each other but also provides key mental stimulation. Training should take place from the earliest possible opportunity and be carried out on a regular basis, but may realistically lapse if not maintained. As dog trainers, we are often approached by clients who have reached the point where their pet or working dog needs retraining. While often avoidable, these are some of the signs we have come to recognise that may indicate your

18 April, 2022

Tips For Caring for A Senior German Shepherd

German Shepherd Dogs are a particularly popular breed for a reason. They are fantastic dogs to own, both as pets or working animals. Despite their working roots, they have adapted to home life and make excellent companion animals as well as protectors. As with all dogs, though, a senior German Shepherd will need more considered care as it ages. This blog will offer some advice about how you can best achieve this: 1. Invest time in understanding your dog’s health profile as a breed and an individual. Certain breeds are more prone than others to specific health conditions, i.e. Pugs

2 March, 2022

How to be a More Responsible Dog Owner

Dog ownership is often a wonderful experience, but it is one that comes with a number of responsibilities. Responsible dog ownership does not need to be a chore, especially when proper guidelines for doing so have been laid out. At a most basic level, responsible owners will ensure that their dog’s needs are met. “The Five Freedoms” are a globally recognised set of principles on animal welfare, and are likely the best and easiest starting point. They are: Freedom from hunger and thirst Freedom from discomfort Freedom from pain Freedom to express natural behaviours Freedom from fear and distress

2 March, 2022

What is Schutzhund?

Schutzhund is a popular protection dog sport with adherents around the world. Originally developed in Germany to test whether or not German Shepherd Dogs could be put to work in police settings, it has become the sporting gold standard for what a working protection dog can be. Officially Schutzhund is known as IGP, with one of its previous names being IPO. All dogs can participate in Schutzhund, but the sport has historically been dominated by German, Belgian, and Dutch Shepherds, Rottweilers, Dobermanns, and Mastiff-type breeds. It should be stressed that temperament is more important than breed, and even some surprising

28 February, 2022

How to Choose a Family Protection Dog

Prospective clients and customers often ask us to help them when choosing a family protection dog. This may be their first dog, and it is a new experience for the whole family. Because of the number of dogs we hold, both individually and as breeds, the choice can seem overwhelming. However, this does not need to be the case. Much like humans, dogs are individuals with personalities and characteristics that transcend breed. Irrespective of breed, we hold dogs that are or more or less friendly, playful, or relaxed. A dog’s personality is always more important than its breed, and our

24 February, 2022

Best Protection Dog Breeds

One of the most common questions we respond to is which breed makes the best protection dog. While potential owners are often looking for a single answer, this is not something we can readily offer. In our experience, several breeds make excellent protection dogs, but the best protection dog for each individual is more dependent on personal needs and dogs’ temperaments. An important first step is establishing what makes a good protection dog. Although it is often assumed that aggression is necessary, this is not in fact the case. What humans perceive as aggression in dogs is actually more often

10 January, 2022

What do Security Dogs Do?

Security dogs fulfil a range of functions including guarding, personal and family protection, and search and detection. There may be overlap between these roles, but they can also stand alone as discrete entities. Technically speaking, any breed can be used to work as a guard dog. Guard dogs work independently, that is without a handler controlling them. They are often left alone in particular areas to act as a deterrent against would-be intruders and attackers. Rather than physically intervening to bite and apprehend an intruder, they are more likely to bark and attract attention to whatever is happening. This does

10 January, 2022

Best and Worst Protection Dog Breeds

As the modern-day descendants of an apex predator, it is natural that dogs have retained wolves’ capacity to chase and bite. Through selective breeding and the development of breed standards, humans have been able to benefit from this and utilise dogs for a range of security taskings. A large number of breeds are now used for family and personal protection work, but some are more appropriate than others. This blog will offer an overview of the breeds commonly used for protection work, and aim to rank them from best to worst. Perhaps the best breed for family protection work is

28 October, 2021

How to Help Your New Protection Dog Settle Into Your Home

Bringing a new dog home is an exciting time for everyone. However, it can also be daunting, especially if they are your first dog. Here are some tips we have found that helped many of our clients when handing over new family protection dogs to them: When your new dog arrives in your home, try not to expect too much from it. Dogs can take up to a few weeks to acclimatise to their new surroundings, handler, and routines. Even the best protection dogs need to get used to their new home and family before their training can come into

28 October, 2021

Czech German Shepherd Dogs

The German Shepherd Dog is an extremely popular breed, especially in working circles. Breeders have developed multiple “lines” for both show and working purposes. One of which is the ever popular “Czech” German Shepherd. Czech German Shepherds were bred and developed in then Czechoslovakia during the 1950s, primarily using East German working bloodlines. Their breeders’ objective was to produce a working dog which accentuated the best of the German Shepherd Dog’s characteristics. Their success is proven by how over sixty years later, Czech German Shepherds are still widely employed in protection, police, and military roles. Temperamentally, the Czech German Shepherd