Hello everyone. I'm not sure if this is the right place for this question or not, and I'm sorry if it is not.
I have a GSD, but am not involved in police work. I do however have a question about the different temperaments in individual police dogs. I have known five seperate police dogs, and I'm not sure if any or all of them have the "correct" temperament. It's a little confusing to me I guess.
The first dog was a large GSD police K-9 that I encountered as a child. His handler brought him to my school to do a demonstration. This dog was so friendly with all of the children, and seemed to enjoy the attention from us, even though he was a fully trained police dog.
The second dog (same handler as above dog), also a GSD, was a very agressive dog. He was brought in to do demonstrations and we were told "hands off". This dog could not be touched by anyone other than his handler.
The third dog (again, same handler), a larger Malinois, was a nice dog, but only with a muzzle on. He could be touched by anyone, but not without the muzzle.
The last two dogs, also GSDs are very sociable dogs, they are taken to demonstrations, and one of the two is brought around town to visit with the people in the town.

Are all of these correct temperaments for police dogs? Is it the training that made these five dogs the way they are, or is it just the personality of the dog?
I have always wondered, after being around all of these dogs...

you talked about different dogs you seen, but what exactly is your question?

I thought the question was pretty clear it was "why were all these dogs so different was it their personalities or were they all trained differently to behave different ways?".Id say the first dog you saw had an exceptional and predictable easy going tempermant,the other dogs for safety reasons could not be trusted because of their individual temperments and personalities.

I think all dogs are trained differently even though they might be training for the same thing.You have to realize that you are dealing with different personalities. That's what make different temperments and different dogs. Maybe I didn't understand your question at first about the five dogs. It also has something to do with the real dog handlers and professional trainers.Protection titles are good, but I am more into the french titles, something more real.

Maybe not a good comparison, but You can have two people trained to be fighters. One can be a very likeable, friendly person. The other may be a real street bum you wouldn't go near with the proverbiale ten foot pole. In the ring, they are both deadly at their trained profession. It all boils down to personalities and temperments.

What do you think the correct police dog temperament should be?

Maybe the department has a hands off policy for all bite dogs. Good policy.

Or that the nice lover dogs were narc dogs, not patrol dogs and it is an issue of training. Like the handler realizes that something could go wrong and he doesn't want his dog reacting in a way that it has been trained to do. For example, the dog misreading a situation and "protecting his handler".

Or maybe some of the dogs just didn't have the right temperament to be all touchy feely.

Or. . .

Or. . .

I think the correct police dog temperament is shown in how he performs his job, not necessarily how he interacts with strangers in public. JMO

Hello:

I have to ask this question why do people want or expect a working PSD to be social with strangers, be it kids or adults? Secondly, you aren't going to get a good answer because dogs are just like people, we all have different temperments, some good and some not so good. We have some good days and our share of bad days. What might be good and normal for me might be chaos and hell for you.

First off, what is your opinion of a true working dog? What kind of characteristics do you think they should possess? How do you develop those traits and how do keep them in tip top form (physically and mentally?)

Speaking strictly about the level of the dog to be "socially open" I would want a dog that is socially open but indifferent to strangers. What that means is a dog who is observant and tolerable to people. For instance, if I give the dog a bath and I'm inside the house drying him off and then we decide to sit down and watch the game on TV and my wife or kid comes into the house, the dog will not have to be kenneled or held by the collar. They also don't have to stand at the door and wait to see if the dog is in the house before they enter. This doesn't mean the dog roams free in the house without my constant supervision, the dog is there and knows the members of the family and doesn't view them as a threat. They don't give him commands and they don't treat him like a pet.

Now when the dog is working, I would expect a higher level of suspicion and aggression towards strangers, or what he percieves as a threat. The ability to control the dog under distracts is very important. I think a dog who is "somewhat" handler dependant is a better candidate than a dog who is more independant. A dog who's handler is important to him and wants to work for him and be obediant makes for a much easier dog to handle and train.

Just for a reference, on my dept with 27 working dogs, there are only 2 dogs that give demo's. All dogs are considered to be hands off for obvious liability reasons. No explorers or ride alongs are permitted with the K-9 handlers and they do not transport their own prisoners. They are all 1 person units (unless they have a trainee).

We have to remember that PSD's are less than lethal tools used by specially trained professionals to do a specific job. They aren't a tool for recruiting or a tool for the dare class or a tool for members of CLERB or City Hall/Council to have a demonstration to justify them writing off their lunch tabs. Does anyone walk up to a cop and say, "hey, can I hold your gun, or can that little expandable baton really hurt someone, mind if it flick it open? Hey what is the difference between mace and pepper spray and what does it smell like, can I try it? Can I turn on your lights and sirens, can you take me to the range and show me what those bean bag shot guns really do?

I would think that perhaps if you live in a small town with a small police force then you might have some reasons for demos, perhaps to seek donations for the K-9 program, etc. But if you live in an large urban area with a large police force I wouldn't be expecting to many demo's. We have just about 4,000 sworn on my dept and the only time we have a demo (that I am aware of) is when they have their annual recruiting seminar weekend with about 25 other agencies.

Sorry if this was long winded, I feel that law enforcements tools belong in law enforcement communities. It is not our job to educate the public about everything we do or everything we have at our disposal.

Hey:

Britny I just re-read your post and are you sure that they bring the dog around to visit with people in town? If they do, what purpose does that accomplish? Who handles that beat while that officer is making the rounds around town with the dog? I hope this isn't true because that is a total waste of valuable time. Where do you live where cops go out and meet and greet people? Let me know if they are hiring because I know about 50 people off the top of my head who would rather do that. Or maybe your agency is just taking the COPPS program to another level?

Brandon
Where I live (PA) this is how a lot of small dept.'s K9 programs survive. If it wasn't for the support of the community and these little dog and pony shows the programs would not get the funding they need and they would be axed.

This is a bit off topic, but I got to ask. What makes a French title more real then other titles? Is it because they where a suit? Come on, they are all dog sports! Each sport has it's difficulties that make it unique, but they all have their strong and weak dogs........

First.
Robert said: Maybe the department has hands off policy for all bite dogs. Good policy.

Then Brandon said: Speaking strictly about the level of the dog to be "socially open" I would want a dog that is socially open but indifferent to strangers. What that means is a dog who is observant and tolerable to people.

I agree with both 100%

Look, A PSD often is housed at the officer’s home and has to deal with “normal” dog environments. Our level of social soundness for a PSD should represent this. Unfortunately, there is often too much Ego and not enough brains about selecting a department dog for service work. Many PSD are good dogs just like many SPD are good dogs.

Folks looking to unload a dog that may bite like a hammer to the anvil but is nervy in temperament snow the department for several grand. All the while stoking the Officer’s mind that this dog comes from so and so Hundland country with a breeder of Yahoo Vom X-y-z Lostinhimmer.

These people will say things like, "If you want a “real” working dog you cannot have your cake and eat it too."

Pure Bull - plain and simple.

Solid working dogs are stable but have real “fire with desire” to use an old military term. Hard to find? Yes. I would still start with a good working line breeder since it is the best chance to find the dog that fits the bill. Top dogs do come from top breeding and good training but a good dog can be found by luck too.

The question: Is it the training that made these five dogs the way they are, or is it just the personality of the dog?

The answer: Both but lean more toward temperament.