I work with a police department that has a small k9 unit at this time. One of my concerns is a new K9 to join our unit. This new K9 is supposed to be a passive narcotics detection dog however he shows a lot of aggression toward people. I still have nt been able to tell whether this is fearful aggression or other issues, my concern is that the dog has gone after people particulary men and children. I need to know how to advise our colonel and the handler to wash this dog out before we have too much invested in him without having him deciding to wash out the entire K9 program. We have already had issues of 2 k9 teams that have left the unit for various reasons. I want to increase the K9 unit but, am fearful of the ramifications if this particular K9 harms someone. Please help <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/confused.gif" alt="" />

Having an aggresive narcotics dog doesn't seem too smart to me unless the dog is dual purpose.

How can they expect the dog to work through crowds of people at an airport or sporting event if it is aggresive to people??

Sometimes, certainly not always - trained detector dogs from some vendors are dogs that had all the qualities of a good detector dog but didn't quite measure up in the area of patrol. In other words the original intent of the vendor was to make a dual purpose dog out of him but he/she didn't have the real hardness to do the work. This dog may have had a considerable amount of aggession work. He may still be a dynamite detector dog.

We have a dog like this. He'll slam a sleeve but it's all play. It would be ashame to try to make this dog something that he is not. He has fired off on a couple of officers but has never bitten anyone.

Is the dog a lab or a GSD or Malinois? I think that would make a difference, if its a lab the aggresion is definatley coming from fear.

are you saying labs can't be confident with their aggression?

Kevin, not for the most part, obviously there might be an exception out there somewhere but no, a lab that was bred to be everyone's buddy is not going to be comfortable being aggresive to a human.

A-men I agree with Joe. I have two Labs.

How many do you see on the SchH field.

They may get agressive with other dogs. But its not in there nature to go after humans.
Few will but most will not, unless there in fight.

Ron

Thanks for al the feedback I havent had the chance to check it until today. I guess I should have mentioned the dog is a pit/shepard/bloodhound
mix to the best of our knowledge from a local spca. I am for getting animals from shelters however I am not sure if this is a good place if you cant work and test the dog before you adopt him. He is apparently doing well in Narc Training
but still has that aggression toward other people. He works well and has bonded with his handler, also most of our searches are vehicle searches and there should be no civilians around however what about the other officers and god forbid if something went wrong how would this k9 react.

James dump the K9 is it is an option and fire the vender/agency. This is the drap I am talking about when I say there are too many dogs that "do the work" but cannot do the work.

James dump the K9 is it is an option and fire the vender/agency. This is the drap I am talking about when I say there are too many dogs that "do the work" but cannot do the work.

Department wanting dogs and accepting the dog that can never be th good example of a community K9 is bad policy.

The over sharp K9 is public intimidation but not a deterrence. Finding a dog that can kick A%* and take Names and not be a psycho-berry is not only possible but should be expected.

Since I have no idea where your dog came form of the training I will blanket this issue. Many K9 training centers and venders either cannot fathom the quality dog or are snowing those it pretends it is protecting with a land shark. Impressive to the city and county officials who do not know beans from bananas.

The problem is for may Police and vender agencies: The truth is not profitable for some.

Hello All:

I agree with the previous poster, James dump the dog. I too am all for rescuing dogs and placing them in homes to give them a second chance at having a wonderful life, etc. But when it comes to service work (of any kind), I would want to see some evidence of genetics and workability.

I am sure there are a few dogs that come from rescue sources that are able to work, but personally I have never seen them. I would also fire this vendor or just don't do business with them. Trying to place a dog with unproven skills and poor socialization skills doesn't sound ethical to me. To top it off, we are talking about a "basically" mixed breed pit bull. These type of dogs have no place working in the law enforcement arena at all. Remember, no matter what anyone says, these dogs were breed to fight and/or kill their opponents. Combined with unstable nerves and aggression towards people is only asking for a law suit and total disbandment of your K9 divison sooner or later.

If this is strictly a monetary issue and the only avenue is to get a dog via adoption, then contact the DoD at Lackland AFB, Texas. They routinely have dogs that they donate to law enforcement.

If you are looking for a proven vendor to get a dog from, there are a few people right here on this board that I am sure will be able to provided the necessary services (training or obtaining a dog) or who can steer you in the right direction. If you want privately email me at: blc200@yahoo.com and I will give you some more info.

There are so many things that you have to take into consideration in obtaining a good dogs. Things like: breeds of dogs that they allow, male v. female, missing teeth, hips and elbows, monorchids/cryptochids, papers or no papers and even country of origin (I know of an couple agencies that will not accept dogs from Hungary for instance).

Also take a look at Kevin's website I think it is: http://www.k9services.com (or just search for it via the links on this page). His site says quite a bit about standards used for various dogs in K9 work, etc. Nothing for nothing it is very professional and very informative.

Hope this helps and keep us posted,
Brandon