As in all training there are steps to follow in order to take a dog through a healthy progression in its development. Through my research I have identified some of these phases, however I am unsure if I understand them in their proper order.

Based on the video The First Steps of Defense these steps seem to be

1. Simple prey guarding (introduced way back during prey development: The First Steps of Bite Training)
2. Tie-out training in the beginning of the civil stage
3. Helper introduces more severe pressure/stress onto the dog
4. Advanced prey guarding (sport) / Muzzle fighting (service)

Do I have this right?

OK I hope this doesn't irritate anyone too badly but, I'm going to keep my questions on defense going for another 48 hrs in the hopes that there is at least one board member who can answer them whom may have just not been signed on in the last little while.

Crossing fingers for another 24hrs...

Just to make sure i got this this right.

You are asking what steps to start and build up your dogs Defense?

That's right, or any dog for that matter. But to be more precise I'm interested in the sequence of the steps as opposed to the steps themsleves.

Brad,
My first step in defensive training is done with the dog behind a fence ( in a pen is ideal ).
A decoy in normal clothing acts "suspect" at a distance of about 30 meters from the enclosure.
Any positive reaction by the dog ( an alert, a bark, etc. ) and the decoy cringes and retreats - the idea is to teach the dog that his monster bark scares off the bad guy.

As the dog acts more and more confident in the next few training sessions the decoy will close the gap between himself and the dog but always run away in fear as the dog puts on more of a show of defense.

Eventually the decoy will be stalking up to the fence and banging on it , which should result in an impressive show of teeth and fury from the dog ( if you have the right dog and have put the time needed into this exercise )

Do this work correctly and all those future steps are *much* easier, believe me.
And this takes a lot of work from the decoy - he's got to be able to radiate menace when needed , then turn into a fear-filled guy running for his life. A good decoy will make or break you in this training exercise.

I do this work all the time at the kennel, and it's exhausting - it's harder then it sounds.

So basically one would start out to teach the dog that running is not necessary, he can use "his voice" to protect himself.

Then, as the dog's confidence improves, thanks to his new found ability, and more stress is put on the dog he is taught to use more "hands-on" actions to thwart his assaulter.

All the while this "hands-on" method is carefully monitored and adjusted accordingly by an experienced decoy in order to improve the dog and bring out the strongest defense drive possible.

Is this the general idea?