Choosing a Puppy as a Schutzhund Prospect
Choosing a Puppy for Schutzhund.
courtesy of the German Shepherd Dog Club of America
In every breed, the pedigree is the key to knowing the potential of the puppy. Schutzhund revolves around working lines --- generations of German Shepherd dogs that have proven themselves and produced similar characteristics in their offspring. These characteristics include not only the physical structure of the dog, which is very important, but also its temperament.
Selecting the German Shepherd bloodlines from which you want your puppy may require advice. Information from breed surveys can help. Of course, it makes sense to discuss your objectives with reputable and experienced Schutzhund handlers or enthusiasts.
Once you have determined that the bloodlines of the potential German Shepherd dam and sire are of high quality, you should observe the parents, especially the Mother, if that is at all possible. The dam will be the main influence on the young pup for the first six weeks of its life. If the dam is nervous or unsure, chances are this uncertainty will be transferred to the offspring.
If you are able to see the litter of German Shepherd pups, watch the puppies together and also separately, to try to determine which is the best puppy. Obvious structural defects or health problems should be watched for.
It is important that the German Shepherd puppy have intense instinct to stalk the prey --- a ball, a toy, etc. --- and also be the leader in the sense of bullying the other puppies. The puppy should not show fear when away from its littermates. It should not need to stay with the mother. The puppy should be adventurous and active, playing with objects shown to it by someone in the enclosure, but it should be independent enough to take that object and go off on its own as well.
It is independence and confidence, combined with the positive contact with the pack leader (the dam, at this time) that will develop into the traits of trainability that you need.
Raising
a German Shepherd Puppy for Schutzhund Work.
Puppyhood
is the most critical period for the development of the characteristics
you want to encourage. Your local Schutzhund club can advise you about
nurturing and socializing your growing German Shepherd puppy.
A puppy learns from it experiences, so you want to provide only positive ones. It should be provided with opportunity to explore and investigate new situations and new people, but always in a non-threatening way. Remember that your goal is to build confidence in the young animal. Your aim is NOT to dominate or oppress the young German Shepherd pup.
Exposure to different environments is crucial to the general education of the dog and also to assure it that the world is a safe pace. If something appears to make the dog unsure, give it the opportunity to investigate it slowly, but do not force the issue.
It is imperative to avoid situations where your German Shepherd would be dominated by another older or stronger dog, or by another puppy. You also want to avoid having to discipline or correct your puppy and thus dampen its spirit or damage its self-confidence. You can do this by never leaving the pup in a situation where it can cause damage to your valuables or find itself in a dangerous predicament.
The final area of development is that of drive encouragement. The natural behaviors that you want to encourage are playing with the ball, tug of war, hide and seek, pulling toys on a string, pursuing you rapidly when you run away, and finally defending itself, its family and its home. The latter really only shows itself between the ages of nine and eighteen months as the German Shepherd pup begins to mature by barking at strangers or intruders. It is better to leave for later formal obedience training with a young dog. The character of the German Shepherd puppy is not sufficiently strong to withstand the corrections involved in obedience training. Acceptable manners at home and in the car and “play“ training, like learning to sit for a food reward, with NO corrections involved, is advisable. Real obedience work should begin only after the dog is well on its way in the protection training.
Schutzhund Around the World
The
first Schutzhund trial was held in Germany in 1901 to emphasize the correct
working temperament and ability in the German Shepherd breed. Originally,
these dogs were herding dogs, but the industrialization of Germany encouraged
breeders to promote the use of their dogs as police and military dogs.
The Verein fur Deutsche Schaferhunde (SV), the parent club, became concerned
that this would lead to careless breeding and undesirable traits such
as mental instability, so it developed the Schutzhund test.
Since then, many other countries and working dog organizations have also adopted Schutzhund as a sport and a test of working performance in dogs. International rules have been established, and they are administered by the Verein fur Deutsche Hundesport (VDH). In 1970 the first Schutzhund trial in the U.S. was held in California. Today, the GSDCA-WDA sponsors trial in all parts of the country and chooses a team in open competition to represent the GSDCA at the WUSV World Championship. More than 25 countries send teams of competitors to the World Championship for Schutzhund dogs from the World Union of German Shepherd clubs. Read more
