Can anyone here tell me if when training a Police dog on Bite work, does the Pakwerker use a Softer sleeve than in Schutzund Training
Why i asked this is because the Dog grips Flesh when stopping a human he would not bite on such an arm as a hard sleeve
Just thinking about this last night when i was in bed

Most police trainers I've worked with that use sleeves like using a hard sleeve with the dogs because it develops hardness in the bite. Harder to bite = harder the dog tries, then when the dog bites something easier his grip is much harder than if the dog never had to try hard for their bite.

At some point the dog transitions to body suit work and muzzle work, where there is no longer a pronounced bite bar on the sleeve and the dog has to try harder to get a good grip on a suit. Hopefully if foundation was done correctly, the dog should be biting hard on the suit.

There are many ideas in what is the best way to work with equipment in police dog work. Some times it depends on a concern for development,basic training where the bite bar sleeves are the best idea. They are anatomically correct, can be had in a variety of hardnesses (I prefer a pretty intermediate sleeve for most all police dog work with a good bit bar that is shaped into the barrel of the sleeve). I occasionally use a hidden sleeve as a diagnostic tool or for young or unseasoned dogs to help them understand that th object of the work is the man. It works once in a training session with a new or at least clean variable piece of clothing over it.
The suit is a much misunderstood tool. It is used for scenario type training where the decoy has much more protection and can act a bit more natural. The suit is also good for teaching alternate locations for the dog to grip, such as the legs etc. Cautions with the suit include the big loose sloppy ones where the dog only has to grab fabric and pull. Bad habits are promoted then. Also continual use of the suit is a danger sign. The suit is nothing but a big soft sleeve if used as the main training equipment. I expect I use it 20% of the time once a dog is in service.
The muzzle is an important tool even in dogs that are uncomfortable in it. The ability to remove equipment from the simulated suspect is important, for the dogs that are comfortable in the muzzle searching for a suspect and following through with captures of various sorts is a boon to training as the decoy can be as natural as a none suspect can be.
Use of things like big barrel sleeves, soft sleeves with sloppy covers, baggy suits, are all negatives in the police dog world. Not that i don't see them and not that it means the dogs are not effective and very good that train on them. I have just found they are not the BEST in training.
I hear things like.....well the barrel sleeve is good for either right or left, or that the suits that are baggy are easier on the decoy, etc. but I figure get a suit that fits right and the bruising is temporary, get a sleeve that fits your decoy even if it means two of them, and train for a single big grip by the service dog. It is tough enough to get a single good grip when we add the uncertainties of suspect behavior lets do all we can to diminish sloppy grips.

Since i posted i asked a fellow over here who helps the Police with there Dogs, He said he sometimes uses a Sleeve with just the outer covering with another thin one inside, He said the Dogs get a full hard Bite on it and do not play around and he said you can feel the bite pretty much so but it never marks the arm