Hello,

My name is Doyle and I'm new to this Board. By way of background, I received a new German Shepherd puppy 1 1/2 weeks ago. My objective is to compete in Schutzhund. I've trained and competed on horses, but never dogs.

The puppy (now 9 weeks)is West German bloodline (Grandson of World Sieger Lasso Vom Neuen Berg) and appears to have potential to me. I purchased three Leerburg tapes and am followng them closely - crate training, short exercises with tugs, learning to sit, short walks on lease, lots of socialization, etc. So, I feel I can handle the basics. He has great prey drive (to my eyes) is smart (already beginning to respond to "sit" periodically), etc., etc.

I'm willing to buy the Leerburg tapes for each additional step of training toward my goal - but (as a prior post said), I'm likely in a position of not knowing enough yet to see my mistakes. I live in St. Louis, not too far from Tom Rose kennels and intend to get a preliminary evaluation of this pup.

My questions are:

1. Assuming the puppy has potential, must he be trained by a professional such as Tom Rose, or can amateurs EFFECTIVELY compete? With Quarter Horses, I found you will do much better if you are with a well known trainer.

I would really like to try doing this myself. Assuming I have average ability for an amateur, is it likely I can take this dog all the way to Schutzhund trials by myself with Leerberg tapes as my teacher and attending seminars such as Bernard Flinks and others? Are there many dogs in Schutzhund where the handler is NOT a professional?

2. Is there much value in joining a local Schutzhund club to learn more about the sport? I intend to attend local and regional trials as I can, and purchase some Leerburg tapes on Schutzhund and past Schutzhund trials. The reason for this (perhaps dumb) question is that I don't want to be influenced by anyone other than those I am confident REALLY know what they are talking about.

3. Any other advice you can give me will be greatly appreciated.

Doyle

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