I have seen the dvd Training the new helper. In it very interesting and detailed instructions and techniques are explained of how the helper should run (or skip)and so forth. Well, I will tell you this honestly, it will be extremely difficult to find a helper here (even with pay). Like I said before, dogtraining is nearly non- existent here (it is even considered a little odd here), so I will be very happy if I succeed in finding one. I doubt that this person would be willing to see the dvd over and over again to perfect the training. So my question is this: how important is this DVD for the protection training?

My heart goes out to you Maria. I searched long and hard before I found a helper that I felt was adequate to train my dog (and me, lol). I drive around 100 miles round trip once a week to work with him. You are in a particularly difficult position because to have just anyone train your dog without the proper knowledge just might leave you with a ruined dog. It's a fine line to be sure and when you don't have many choices it's that much more frustrating. Ed has said that it isn't impossible to protection train your own dog but there are certain very important criteria that have to be followed. Hopefully, some of the more seasoned folks on the board can give you more to go on.

Thanks again for your reply, Robin.
I have read a lot of Ed's articles and I am quite aware of the risks and that protection training is the most difficult training. But I have bought 5 dvds plus training material (shipping costs and import duties incl.) and it would be a waste not to give it a try. True, I am new to dog training, but I have lived with dogs all my life so I think I know a little bit about dog behaviour. I love my dog so I will not let any harm come to him. If he cannot be protection trained I will simply switch to plan B: tracking, because this dog absolutely loves training.

Dear Will,

There are not dog training organisations here, I live on an island, not in the US or Europe where I could drive to such locations. I have read in one of Ed's aricles that a handler could do most of the bite training him/herself as the dog is worked in prey drive (in 1rst steps of bite training). I have read also that protection training is one of the most difficult training, but nowhere that only experienced trainers should buy those dvds. Please excuse me, I do not want to sound harsh, but if that is the case it should be made very clear before inexperienced trainers buy those dvds and not afterwards, don't you think?

You don't have to be experienced to buy the DVD, but you need to be experienced to train a dog in protection. For instance, you should know when a dog is ready to be worked in defense. You should know all the subtleties of the different drives. At the very least you need to watch helpers and dogs interacting so that you can begin to identify drives. Even very experienced helpers prefer others work their dogs.

Some people "have it", some don't. I've seen people that just absolutely don't get what the heck they are doing, even with good instruction, and I've seen people that are total naturals at catching a dog the first time they try.

Alot of it has to do with a persons feel for dogs, and I think some of it has to do with ability to learn. Some people are horrible at following instructions, they have a hard time noticing details. Its like people who read the word "Shepherd" 10 times in an email you send them, but continue to write "Sheppard" in their reply. The same goes for decoying. Some people will watch a decoy work and pick up how he moves his feet, the direction in which he catches, physical posture he has when he drives the dog, the way he positions the dog, the direction he moves into the dog, and about 500 other minor details.

Other people will watch the same decoy, and they won't notice any of those things, then go out onto the field and present the sleeve with the bite bar parallel to the ground, don't position their feet correctly and totally jam the dog. I saw one person that was trying to learn to decoy, and she would jam the dog, then turn to absorb the dog after the dog was already jammed. She couldn't grasp the concept of it being a single fluid motion of absorbing the impact, and this never sunk in even after being told and shown many times.

Now, this is just observation of positioning as a decoy. Now imagine someone who can't grasp these concepts trying to read your dog's body language! That's just disaster waiting to happen. If they can't watch a human being and learn from watching, then how are they going to look at a dog and understand what the dog is telling them?

This is where you get all the idiot PPD trainers that work the dogs entirely in defense and think the dog is tough because he's snarling, showing teeth, raising his hackles and growling while he's biting

Maria, are you sure there is nobody on Aruba that can work dogs? I know there are people in Curacao that do it, and have met alot of people that send working dogs to Curacao on a regular basis. Maybe there is also a small community of working dog people in Aruba that just don't promote themselves as openly?

Bedankt voor het antwoord Mike,

Ik dacht toen ik het artikel van Ed had gelezen dat ik zelf het meeste van het bijtwerk kon doen aangezien de hond dan in prooidrift wordt getraind. Ik was van plan om daarna een helper te zoeken voor het verdedigingswerk. Het is echt heel jammer, maar het lijkt van wat ik kan opmaken uit de antwoorden van de trainers hier dat het te gevaarlijk is om zelf bijtwerk te doen als onervaren trainer, en dan hebben we het nog niet eens over het verdedigingswerk met een helper. Ik kan dus niets doen met de 4 van 5 dvds en trainingsmateriaal die ik heb gekocht. Ik heb net je baas een mail verstuurd om te zoeken naar een bevredigende oplossing voor de zaak voor ons beiden.

Ed's comments edited in here;

ENGLISH ONLY ON MY WEB BOARD. ONLY ONE WARNING ON THIS

A green dog should have a well trained helper, and a well trained dog can deal with a novice helper. I am not saying this to destroy your dreams but to keep you and yuor dog safe. Anything else spells disaster.
If you really want to do it then look into having someone come and help you. Heck I live in the U.S. Flinks does not but I have still attended his seminars. Not because im a rich person either but because I went into this knowing I would do whatever it takes.
DVD's can only explain so much, they are more of a tool then and end all be all for training. Best of luck!

 Quote: Maria van den Ham

Bedankt voor het antwoord Mike,

Ik dacht toen ik het artikel van Ed had gelezen dat ik zelf het meeste van het bijtwerk kon doen aangezien de hond dan in prooidrift wordt getraind. Ik was van plan om daarna een helper te zoeken voor het verdedigingswerk. Het is echt heel jammer, maar het lijkt van wat ik kan opmaken uit de antwoorden van de trainers hier dat het te gevaarlijk is om zelf bijtwerk te doen als onervaren trainer, en dan hebben we het nog niet eens over het verdedigingswerk met een helper. Ik kan dus niets doen met de 4 van 5 dvds en trainingsmateriaal die ik heb gekocht. Ik heb net je baas een mail verstuurd om te zoeken naar een bevredigende oplossing voor de zaak voor ons beiden.

Huh??

Hi Brad, You can copy then passte it at Babelfish if you want a loose translation.