Choosing A Working Puppy

Working Temperament

Breeds that are expected to do apprehension work add a whole new dimension to the temperament breeding game. Dog that do protection work need to have some suspicion or defensiveness, but not so much that they are shy or sharp. They need to have good "nerves," but not so much nerve that they are dull. They need to have some dominance so they will stand up to those that they do not consider pack members, yet they also need to work under the direction of their handler. Add to this mix differing levels of prey drive, fight drive, hunt drive, energy level and whatever attributes you want to classify those innate traits that make a working dog a working dog, and when you breed two dogs together, you seem to get an infinite combination of different traits of different levels in the puppies, sometimes creating a wide range of abilities within a single litter.

For example, dogs have different levels of "reactivity," also called nerve strength or sharpness (at least as it relates to the perception of threat). A sharp dog is nervous, reacts to small amounts of stimulation and can be either shy or sharp shy or just react aggressively to every challenge. On the other end of the scale, a dull dog is unreactive, generally displays a low energy level and takes a lot of stimulation to get going. A good working dog is neither too sharp nor too dull, but has good "nerve" so that he accepts new environments, people and sensory challenges without reverting to avoidance or inappropriate aggression.

There are dozens of other traits besides nerves that are greatly influenced by genetics like pain thresholds (or touch sensitivity), dominance, emotional sensitivity, sound sensitivity, etc. etc.

Physical Problems : See My Health Issues Page.

Pick the Breeder before you Pick the Puppy

Finding a breeder you can trust is more important than the actual picking of the puppy. A good breeder will steer you to the right litter or puppy based on their experience with their progeny. A good breeder will do their best to make things right if something goes wrong and the puppy has a fault that won't allow it to work. Because of all the work that goes into getting titles on dogs, good puppies from good breeders will not be cheap, but to a great extent you get what you pay for. Look into the breeder's reputation and how they have treated others, and how many of their dogs are working in police and Schutzhund homes. Ask for references and contact the owners of those working dogs. Breeders are often a good resource for older dogs that have been returned because of divorces, life changes, etc. A good breeder will let you see and work with the parents, review the titles and scores with you, produce paperwork for screenings, breed ratings, etc.

Check Out the Parents

Once you have located a breeder and a litter, check out the parents. I strongly recommend that prospective police dogs be of medium size and not over-angulated. Large dogs don't have as much stamina as smaller dogs and large and over-angulated dogs are less agile and more prone to injury. Look for a compact build and a strong, straight back. Watch the parents move and work and see how fast or agile they are. If the parents are agile, the puppies will be also. For dogs that will do bite work, look for a strong head, jaws and teeth.

If all you want for a dog is a working dog that will not be bred, don't get obsessed with color or other conformation details that don't affect working ability.

Testing Puppies

Once you have picked a breeder, inquire about their puppy testing process or if you will be allowed to test the litter and pick your own puppy. Also inquire about how the puppies are kept and socialized as they are growing up. Early socialization, play and exposure is essential to proper puppy development. If the breeder doesn't do much with the puppies, it will affect their performance on the puppy tests. Most good breeders socialize and work with their puppies, and many are kept in the house with the family, ensuring a good basic socialization period.

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Volhard Puppy Test

When I test puppies, I use the puppy test formulated by the Volhards that can be found at www.volhard.com. It has worked well for me, is utilized by many different people and has allowed me to compare litter scores down through the years. The test includes social aspects, dominance, hardness, forgiveness, noise sensitivity, retrieving and chasing a rag. Combined with knowledge of canine body language, it is an excellent tool for predicting the adult personality of the puppy, assuming that the puppy is raised in a reasonably good environment.

The test I first learned includes one additional element that was added to the Volhard tests at the start of the test, and that involves observing what the puppy does when first placed in the testing room, a place new to the puppy. When the breeder first puts the puppy in the room, it is put down about 10 or more feet from the tester, facing away. The breeder exits quickly and quietly and the tester doesn't make a movement or noise, but just observes. Since most puppies can't see very well at distances at this age, they suddenly think they are all alone in the room. It has been my experience that puppies that show confidence at this point and readily start exploring the room with a positive attitude will be confident as adults and able to work in new environments with confidence. While testing, the breeder may observe through a glass window, but they can't make any noise or distract the puppy in any way.
One caution about the test: sometimes individuals in a litter or even entire litters develop a little slowly. The larger GSD lines will be slower in development and often the larger puppies, like males, will be slower developing than the females. These litters or pups can be tested a little later than 7 weeks, like 8 or 8.5 weeks. I have seen litters from retrieving adults where the smaller pups retrieved well but the larger pups did not because of developmental delays. These pups did make attempts to retrieve and chased things, but did not pick them up or carry them as well. In general, if the parents are fetch freaks and the puppies make decent attempts, they will probably grow up to be like the parents even if they don't do it due to developmental delays at testing time.

Most German Shepherd puppies being tested around 7 to 8 weeks are just beginning to see distances and can have a hard time focusing on moving objects and pursuing them. The retrieving and biting objects need to be tailored to the size of the puppies - many do not have mouths big enough to pick up a tennis ball, so a ball of paper, small ball and bunch of keys may be used as testing objects. Malinois and other breeds develop faster and will show clearer responses. Even if the puppies haven't progressed far enough to show a clear response, usually their attempts will reveal how dedicated they are to the test. If they are trying with everything they have to catch the ball or rag, then they are good prospects.

All tests need to be done in a place that is new to the puppies and with a person that is new to them. One element that can affect the testing is having to test in an area where a lot of other dogs are barking in the background. This often happens in kennel situations. If the puppies have heard this before, it is not a problem. If the puppies aren't used to it, their responses in the first exploring part may be delayed as they get used to it. After all, a whole bunch of adult dogs barking is important and threatening to a puppy. The better working dogs will adapt and their body language, head and tail up, will reveal their confidence by the end of the testing.

If a puppy is obviously sick, it may not test well and should be re-tested when it is healthy.

Key Elements of Testing

Some key elements that I have found important during the test: one, I put great weight on what the puppy does in the first part of the test, when the breeder brings it into the strange room, puts it down in the middle of the empty floor facing away from the exit and then leaves, hopefully without the puppy following. The very best working dogs recover very quickly, perking up and moving off with head and tail up, exploring the new place within 3 seconds or so. This response has been relatively rare in my experience with German Shepherds and Labrador puppies. Most pups sit there over 4 seconds and then go. How they go is then important, is it head and tail up, fast or confidant, or head and tail down, slinking around. The more confidence a pup shows in this part of the test, the more confidence it will show in new environments. Any puppy that does not explore or spends all its time trying to cling to the tester because of insecurity should not be picked as a working dog.

For work, if a puppy shows noise shyness, it should be rejected. Startling and investigation are desirable, but startling and a fear response is not. Working puppies should also be emotionally and physically hard.

Working puppies should chase moving objects and it is preferable that they mouth, grab and pick them up. The better ones will retrieve a bunch of keys or other metal objects. I always play with a small rag or sock if testing dogs for bite work. How puppies pursue and bite the rag reveals their "genetic" grip. Puppies that pursue eagerly, even if uncoordinated due to delayed development, grab the rag full or at least regrip to full, then hold hard, calm and firm will do the same if properly trained in bite work. If the puppies grab, thrash, rebite, etc., they will probably do so as an adult, not matter how they are trained. Puppies that are bred to do bite work should be very mouthy, biting people, objects, carrying stuff, etc.

If you aren't allowed to do full tests on a puppy, you can get a pretty good idea of the puppy's quality on your own. Before the puppy gets to know you, take the puppy to an area where the puppy has never been before, preferably indoors with few distractions or outdoors without much to smell, like on pavement. See if the puppy will explore while you stay still, and what its body language is like when it does explore. It should explore, preferably with confidence. Walk away, call the puppy, and let it come to you and then walk again and see if the pup follows you. How does it follow? Head and tail up with confidence is best. Do something to make a loud noise that the puppy can investigate, like drop a wooden board or pot about 5 feet behind the puppy. It will probably jump, but then it should approach the source of the sound, not run away.
Take the puppy over some new footing, like a plastic tarp, metal sheet, etc. The puppy should follow willingly. Then check retrieving by playing with a crumpled paper ball (for little pups), a smaller ball or toy, then something hard like a bunch of metal keys. Play with a soft rag, like a small towel or sock, and sometimes tying it on a string or thin rope helps the puppies to play with it instead of you. Is the puppy's play enthusiastic, all out? Does it bite the rag full, hard and calm? If the puppy appears a little too young for the tests, it may not be coordinated, but if it tries really hard to play or grab, it is probably a good candidate. Effort and emotional make up are more important to read in these tests than actual performance at physical tasks if the puppies are young and uncoordinated.

Note the energy level of the puppy during testing. If the pup gallops and runs everywhere, doing everything at a fast pace throughout the whole test, the pup has a very high energy level. If it trots most of the time, it is a medium level dog, and if it walks or is sluggish, it is a low energy dog. High energy dogs are high maintenance because they require constant attention and management. Not every handler likes this type of dog, but they are willing and ready to work anytime and anywhere. Kept in good physical shape, they can work 6 hours straight, take a short break and bounce back ready to work another 6 hours. They have a high capacity for training and can be trained for longer periods with more intensity than other dogs. This is an advantage if you need to finish the dog's training in a short period of time.
I prefer puppies that make eye contact with people. The better working puppies have the confidence and socialization to do this.

The Volhard test scores puppies with a numerical score that, in general, rates the more pronounced or confident and dominant responses with the lowest score. For a working dog, the lowest scores (more confident responses) in Social Attraction, Following, Touch Sensitivity, Retrieving and Sight Sensitivity are desirable. In my opinion, a 2, 3 and possibly one 4 in Restraint, Social Dominance and Elevation Dominance make for a more trainable dog that will accept guidance and leadership from a handler. A puppy that tests out as all 1s, biting and growling even at a young age, will definitely be a handful and probably exhibit handler aggression when an adult unless they are raised and trained very carefully. Sometimes a dog that has very high aggression and dominance and yet lacks true confidence will fight restraint and their lack of control in the Dominance exercises.

Socialize, Socialize, Socialize

Your work has only begun once you pick and buy a quality working puppy. You have to raise it properly, including extensive socialization with other dogs, animals and people. I strongly suggest you buy Dr. Dunbar's books on raising puppies, as they are a great help and will save much time and aggravation by preventing common puppy problems. Most dog aggressive dogs are caused by poor socialization. A good working dog is created as much by how it is raised and trained as how it is bred. Proper raising teaches the dog many basic behaviors and creates a life long relationship and communication between the dog and its handler. Many basic training exercises and "foundation" or "imprinting" work for later work can be accomplished at a young age, setting the stage for rapid learning when the dog begins formal training for work.

   Angie Young

German Shepherd Breeder

Chattanooga, Tennessee

423-595-8317

camelotshepherds@comcast.net