ATTACK-TRAINED vs. NATURAL PROTECTOR

Cheer up! Even if you are convinced that the classification of
attack-trained" could make a dog into quite a liability, you can still
have the right guard dog whether you need a reliable alarm or a physical
protector. Whatever little protection you require from a dog, you will
profit from comparing two classifications of dogs at the highest level
of guard work, which is man-stopping. One of these is the
attack-trained dog who has been expertly agitated to a point where he
identifies persons who act in a certain way, or enter certain places, as
human varmints whom he should attack. The second kind is the natural
guard dog who is motivated by inherent temperament traits to accept
responsibility for the protection of persons and property and to use the
proper amount of force to do that job.

The advantages of an attack-trained dog are:

1. Agitation can sometimes put suspicion into an overly trusting dog,
stiffen up an indecisive dog, or break the "taboo" a dog might have
against biting a person, thus making possible varying degrees of
usefulness in dogs who could not otherwise qualify for guard dog work.

2. Attack training makes it easy to set up test situations in which a
dog can demonstrate his readiness to bite a person who acts in a certain
way.

3. An attack-trained dog may make an all-out assault more certainly in
some situations than would a natural guard dog.

4. His reputation of being attack-trained may discourage intruders.


The disadvantages of an attack-trained dog are:

1. In the event of law suits, his classification of "attack-trained"
would prejudice a court.

2. He can be stimulated to attack under the most regrettable
circumstances by a person who may innocently act like an agitator.

3. The patterns of reaction that trigger him will often override his
discernment and good judgment.

4. Although the suspicious moves of an agitator can be purposefully
related to trespassing, the theft of garden tools, or threats to a
person, and can result in a dog clobbering people who "make the wrong
moves," they can never provide the fine discrimination that is based on
a sense of responsibility.

5. The impression made by attack training will often give undeserved
accreditation to an inferior dog.

6. A dog that needs to be shut away for the protection of the innocent
will probably not be close at hand when he is needed.

7. He can be teased into a booby trap much easier than a natural guard.

8. If lightly agitated in the apparent hope that he will "bite
lightly," he will have a half-hearted attitude that will soon fade to
nothing.


The advantages of a natural guard dog are:

1. Motivated by a responsibility for what is his, he won't leave his
own property to bite someone who happens to act in a certain way.

2. He is more completely aware of his surroundings and less subject to
distraction than an attack-trained dog would be.

3. His judgment is better: He won't leave the baby and run out toward
the road to investigate the waving motions of a surveyor.

4. He is discriminating in his enforcement as well as in his decisions.
It is not uncommon for him merely to warn friends who try to come near
his baby but attack a stranger who takes the same liberties.

5. In the case of a bad bite under doubtful circumstances he will be
regarded in court as a dog who did "what came naturally" instead of as a
dog "trained to attack human beings."


The disadvantages of a natural guard dog are:

1. He is much more difficult to obtain.

2. Because he is motivated to protect something by "what he feels"
rather than to fight something because certain patterns tell him to do
so, he is harder to test and demonstrate.

3. He may have less psychological effect than a dog reputed to be
attack-trained.

4. In some situations he may only warn or threaten, where the agitated
dog would make an all-out attack.

If, after reading these comparisons, you decide you want a dog to make
an all-out attack each time he is stimulated, and you are going to be
with him every moment he is on duty, as with the police dog, you will
find instructions for that type of training in the Police Dog Section.
You may decide that, since you are without acquaintances who would ever
call on you, the dog most useful to you would be one who uses force on
everyone who enters his premises. The section on plant-protection dogs
will take you to such a goal. Talk to your lawyer before you decide on
either of these two types of dogs for personal protection, and get costs
from an agent on how much liability insurance you should carry.
In the name of sweet reason, do not try to reduce the risk of having an
attack-trained dog by giving "light agitation" with the thought that
your dog will only bite lightly. As for that smooth-sounding asininity,
"attacks only on command," what sort of a nut would want a dog who would
not defend him when he was asleep or voiceless from a case of
laryngitis?
You may conclude, after weighing the foregoing caveat, that some kind of
a natural guard dog would be the best kind for you.