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Frequently Asked Questions (FAQS);faqs.247



There are many organizations in the US that provide guide dogs for
blind people.  In the East it's The Seeing Eye (Morristown, NJ), and
in the West it's Guide Dogs for the Blind (San Rafael, CA).  There is
Leader Dogs for the Blind in the Michigan area.  Guide Dogs of the
Desert is a Southern California-based group.  [more detailed
addresses?]

Dogs guiding the blind must not only be able to guide their owner
through traffic, obstacles, etc, but also must ignore other people,
dogs, and distractions.  They are, by law in most places, allowed to
enter any building or establishment.

1.  Guide Dogs for the Blind [US]

Guide Dogs got started in 1942.  It costs them about $40,000 per dog.
This reflects how much money they get in donations: to arrive at this
figure they take their total yearly operating costs and divide it by
the number of successful dogs they produce.

The breeds used by Guide Dogs are black and yellow Labs, Golden
Retriever, and German Shepherd.  The males and females used for
breeding live in homes as regular "pets."  They go back to Guide Dogs
to be bred and the females go back when they're in season even if they
aren't going to be bred.  The females are bred once a year.  The
females also go back to whelp and raise their puppies in the Guide Dog
kennels.  All of these breeders live in homes within a 50 mile radius
of Guide Dogs.

Families who raise the puppies simply train them in basic dog
obedience, and stress lots of socialization and good manners.  For
example, if you go to a dog show, you are likely to see several such
puppies there, learning to take it all in stride.  The dogs go back
for their formal training when they're about 1.5 years old, although
they can go back as young as 1.0 year old.

Children are preferred as puppy raisers, hence the coordination with
4-H.  Interestingly enough, the puppies raised by kids are more likely
to make it through the formal guide dog training.  The difference is
not drastic, but is "significant."

When dogs go back for their training they're carefully screened for
any hip abnormalities.  If the hips aren't very good they're
immediately "retired."  The formal training takes about 6 months.
During this time they live in the kennels at Guide Dogs.  During their
formal training they get a letter grade (A-F) each week.  Dogs can
fail for a variety of reasons.  As you might guess, some dogs don't
transition well from living in a puppy raiser's home to living in the
kennels and just get stressed out and fail.  The puppy raiser gets the
option of keeping a dog that failed.  If the puppy raiser can't keep
the dog they can place it in a home.  The puppy raiser can also let
Guide Dogs place the dog; the waiting list is at least 3 years long.

Before a guide dog is given to a blind person the blind person must
attend training at Guide Dogs.  This training is 4 weeks long.  During
this time the blind person lives in the dorms at Guide Dogs.  There
are about 12 people in each 4-week class.  The first week of training
is without the dog.  During the last week of training they make field
trips to downtown San Francisco.  People coming back to get a
replacement dog take a two week "refresher" class.  A graduation
ceremony is held on Saturday at 1pm, every 4 weeks at Guide Dogs for
the Blind in San Rafael.  The puppy raisers come to the graduation
ceremony and each puppy raiser formally presents the guide dog they
raised to the blind person.  (As you can imagine, it's a rather
tearful ceremony.)  The public is welcome to come to the graduations;
they are held outdoors and attire is casual.  After the graduation
ceremony there is a demonstration of a working guide dog and tours of
the kennels and facilities.

Guide Dogs for the Blind is a completely non-profit organization and
survives entirely on donations.  The blind people don't pay any money
for the guide dog.  The guide dog is still owned by Guide Dogs while
the blind person has it; there have been occasional cases where the
blind person just wasn't equipped or prepared to have a dog and the
dog is returned to Guide Dogs.  Guide Dogs makes a yearly visit with
each blind person that has one of their dogs to check on the dog's
health, behavior, etc.

2.  Statens Hundskola [Sweden]

In Sweden (Statens Hundskola) they screen the dogs at least twice, the
first time just before sexual maturity to determine if a male dog will
be neutered.  Their main problem is that so many dogs wind up
unsuitable, so they are starting an education programme for the people
who take care of the puppies.

[I envision sections on Seeing Eye, UK Guide dogs, etc, being added.]

3.  References

Pfaffenberger, Clarence J.  _The new knowledge of dog behavior_.
Foreword by J. P. Scott.  Consultant on genetics: Benson E. Ginsburg.
New York, Howell Book House, 1963.
  Gives an excellent history of how Guide Dogs was started, and has
  other interesting information.

Pfaffenberger, Clarence J., et al., with the editorial assistance of
Sarah F. Scott. _Guide Dogs for the Blind, Their Selection,
Development, and Training_.  Amsterdam; New York: Elsevier Scientific
Pub.  Co.; distributors for the U.S. and Canada, Elsevier/North
Holland, 1976.
  Many specific details on the genetics, training, 4-H project
  coordination, and so forth.  Includes a history of the organization.

Harrington, Paula.  _Looking ahead: Guide Dogs for the Blind_. 1st ed.
San Rafael, CA: Guide Dogs for the Blind, c1990.
  This one is sort of a "coffee table" book; lots of nice color
  photographs, and it covers the history of Guide Dogs, the training
  (both for the dog and the blind person), the 4-H puppy raisers, and
  lots of other stuff.


B.  Hearing and Signal Dogs.

Other dogs are trained to assist deaf people.  They alert their owner
to a variety of sounds, usually by coming up to the person and going
back to the source of the sound.  They will signal on door bell and
knocking, phones, smoke alarms, crying babies and much more.  They are
licensed as are guide dogs and are to be permitted anywhere,
although since they are not as widely recognized, their owners often
have to display their permit.

There are several organizations that train hearing dogs; CCI (below)
is one of them.  Others (I cannot vouch for the accuracy of the
addresses except where noted):

  * American Humane Association, 5351 S. Roslyn Street, Englewood,
    Colorado 80111.  (303-779-1400.
  * Audio Dogs, 27 Crescent Street, Brooklyn, New York 11208.
    212-827-2792.
  * Dogs for the Deaf, Applegate Behavior Station, 13260 Highway 238,
    Jacksonville, Oregon 97530.  503-899-7177.
  * Guide Dog Foundation, 371 Jericho Turnpike, Smithtown, New York
    11787. 516-265-2121.
  * Hearing Dog, Inc., Agnes McGrath, Director; 5901 E. 89 Ave.,
    Henderson, Colorado 80640.  303-287-3277 (voice/tty).
  * NEADS (New England Assistance Dog Service), P.O. Box 213, West
    Boylston, Massachusetts 01583.  508-835-3304 (TT/voice).  Verified
    May '92.
  * San Francisco SPCA, Hearing Dog Program, 2500 16th Street, San
    Francisco, CA 94103.  415-554-3020.  Verified March '92.

An organization that teaches deaf people to train their own dogs:

  * Handi-Dogs, Inc., PO Box 12563, Tucson, Arizona 85732.  602-326-3412
    or 602-325-6466.


C.  Canine Companions for Independence.

CCI was founded in 1975.  They estimate that each of their dogs takes
about $20,000 to train, a cost covered by donations and volunteer
work.  It is a national-wide organization with many regional chapters.

National Headquarters            NW Regional Center
4350 Occidental Road            1215 Sebastopol Road
P.O. Box 446                Santa Rosa, CA 95407-6834
Santa Rosa, CA 95402-0446        707-579-1985 V/TDD
702-528-0830 V/TDD

SW Regional Center            SE Regional Center
P.O. Box 8247                P.O. Box 547511
Rancho Santa Fe, CA 92067-8247        Orlando, FL 32854-7511
619-756-1012 V/TDD            407-682-2535 V/TDD

NC Regional Center            NE Regional Center
4989 State Route 37 East        P.O. Box 205
Delaware, OH 43015-9682            Farmingdale, NY 11735-0205
614-548-4447 V/TDD            516-694-6938 V/TDD

This organization is involved in training dogs to assist handicapped
people.  They train signal dogs for the deaf, and dogs for physically
disabled or developmentally disabled persons.

Canine Companions for Independence has provided highly skilled
assistance dogs for people with disabilities since 1975.  CCI started
as a small, at-home organization and has grown into a dynamic
non-profit agency with five regional centers nationwide.

A Canine Companion's specialized training starts in a volunteer puppy
raiser's home.  The puppy raiser is responsible for the young dog's
care, socialization, and the teaching of basic commands.  At 1.5 years
of age, the dog is returned to a CCI regional training center for
eight months of advanced training by a professional CCI instructor.
The dog is then ready for an intensive two-to-three week training camp
where its new owner learns to work with a fully trained dog.

It costs more than US$20,000 to breed, raise, and train each Canine
Companion, yet recipients pay only a US$25 application fee and US$100
for training seminar supplies. The dog is provided completely free of
charge.  CCI depends entirely on donations; it does not receive
government funds.  CCI also relies heavily on the dedication of its
many volunteers, who play a vital role in CCI's mission to provide
exceptional dogs for exceptional people.

The breeds CCI uses for service and social dogs are black and yellow
Labs, Golden Retrievers, German Shepherds, and Lab/Golden Retriever
mix.  CCI is moving away from using German Shepherds for two reasons:
first, a lot of the public view (and fear) German Shepherds as
"police" or "guard" dogs, and second, German Shepherds bond very
strongly to people and the program is difficult on them because first
they form a strong bond to their puppy raiser, then to their trainer
when they go back to CCI, and then to their eventual handicapped
owner.  For signal dogs they use Corgis and Border Collies.

CCI will work with people in need of assistance to determine if a
properly trained dog can provide that assistance.  Dogs can be taught
to retrieve a variety of things -- even to distinguish between
specific items -- and to manipulate a variety of objects.  Monkeys
have been tried for this purpose, as they are more dexterous.
However, they are not as reliably trainable and are very expensive, so
dogs present a much more practical alternative.  Given some
extensions, such as rope handles on doors and light switches, dogs can
give a disabled person complete mobility within her or his home.

CCI finds and trains a variety of dogs for different forms of
assistance: hearing dogs, physically disabled assistant dogs, even as
therapy dogs.  They are all neutered, as with guide dogs.  People who
are to receive one of the dogs are required to attend a two-week
seminar to learn how to communicate and care for their assistance.  As
needed, the people and their dogs are provided with permits that
identify the dogs as licensed canine companions -- this is enough to
gain entry into most places, as with the more well-known Seeing Eye
dogs.


|D.  Therapy Dogs.

|Dogs are quite often used in therapy.  This ranges from visiting
|hospitalized people to being a companion dog for mentally handicapped
|or disturbed persons.  There are a variety of groups that train
|therapy dogs, some local and some national.  Some use the AKC Canine
|Good Citizen test to choose suitable dogs, others have devised their
|own Temperament Tests.

|A national organization that dispenses information about therapy dogs
|is the Delta Society, PO Box 1080, Renton, WA 98057, [phone].

|In addition many local humane societies, breed clubs, and obedience
|clubs do some hospital visitation.


E.  Search and Rescue Dogs.

SAR comprises a large variety of abilities, some of which are covered
separately below.  SAR varies by locale: searching for victims in
rubble (avalanches or collapsed buildings) is different from searching
wilderness/forest areas for a missing person.  SAR is often linked
with local law enforcement, as SAR dogs can trail escaped convicts or
suspects from a crime scene.

1.  Where to get started

It is best to affiliate with a reputable SAR organization.  You may
even wish to join the reserves unit with your local law enforcement --
this entitles you to insurance protection, for example.  Be picky
about finding a professional organization to join: there are many
wannabe clubs out there that would really just get in the way of an
actual SAR effort, and there is variability even with law-enforcement
groups.

There are some national groups and many states have their own
organizations (e.g., California's CARDA -- CAlifornia Rescue Dog
Association, WOOF -- Wilderness Finders, Inc., SSD -- Sierra Search
Dogs).  An additional benefit is being able to learn from people
who've been at this for a long time: no book or self-training will
ever give you the valuable insights you can gain this way.  These
types of organization will have their own certification and testing
processes.  For example, WOOF requires dogs and handlers to be dual
certified -- wilderness AND disaster SAR.

A professional organization should have law enforcement liasons (or
even be part of the police force) as any search, even for a missing
person, has the potential for turning into a hunt for a felon.  Some
organizations are put together from law enforcement reserve officers,
sometimes active duty officers.  Others simply work closely with local
law enforcement.  Cooperation for the protection of everyone is
essential.

Any dog can detect scent.  Some are individually better at it than
others.  Some breeds (especially the hounds) have been bred so that as
a class, they contain many more talented individuals.  A dog's
conformation, structure and temperament will all affect its talent at
tracking or trailing.  But the breed doesn't really matter, except for
serious and professional tracking.  You can have fun with tracking on
your own.  All you have to do is train your dog to follow its nose.
Some extremely practical information, whether or not you're serious
about SAR, to get started with can be found in:

Button, Lue.  _Practical Scent Dog Training_.  Alpine Publications,
Inc. 214 19th St. SE, Loveland, CO 80537.  1990.  ISBN: 0-931866-47-2.
  A step-by-step practical training guide for air scent, evidence
  search, disaster search and the AKC tracking test.  Starts with
  young puppies.  Well illustrated and methods extensively tested at
  Los Alamos' Mountain Canine Corps.

2.  Tracking and Trailing

There are two major ways to follow the trail of a person, although
they're really on two ends of a continuum.  _Tracking_ is the process
where the dog follows the person's exact path.  _Trailing_ is the
process where the dog follows the person's scent, which may or may not
approximate the path the person took because of factors affecting the
dispersal of scent such as wind and temperature.  Contrary to popular
opinion, water does not disrupt a tracking or trailing dog, the dog
will simply cast around for your trail on the other side.  In
addition, dogs can locate corpses in the water, so the theory that
water does not hold scent does not, well, hold water.  Dogs can even
trail people in cars, from the scent that blows out of the window or
through the vents of the car.

Some common terminology: A Track Solid dog follows a track, and
usually the newest.  A Track Sure dog will follow the track associated
with the scent he started with, and will not follow a track laid by a
different person as long as the second track was laid at a different
time.  A Track Clean Dog will follow the correct trail even if it
crosses other trails laid at the same time.  For example, for disaster
work (e.g., finding victims in rubble), dogs lead their handlers
towards any human scent from the rubble; this is "tracking solid."  A
Bloodhound, given a scent article, will "track clean," finding that
same individual regardless of whatever crosses the track.

To start trailing a specific individual, the dog needs an
uncontaminated scent article.  Best items are underwear, T-shirts, or
something that the person has directly handled.  The scent article is
just as much evidence as the "smoking gun" is, unfortunately, many
people (including law enforcement folks) are still unaware of how to
use scent as evidence and often handle, and thus contaminate,
potential scent articles.  Dogs can still get around this by doing the
"missing member" search: the dog takes note of which scent on the
article is not immediately present and searches for that person.

Traditionally, people think of SAR dogs hunting through forest or
wilderness for lost hikers or children.  While this is still quite
true, SAR dogs also find escaped prisoners, lost [mentally impaired]
patients, lost children in the city or the suburbs, suspects fleeing a
crime scene.  As a result, urban SAR is rapidly growing.

Bloodhounds are by far the best for performing difficult and long
trails.  They are large (100-120 lbs), capable of covering great
distance, and their facial structure (loose skin) allows them to cup
and catch even the faintest scent.  Their stubborn and patient
temperament allows them to stick with trails that are miles long.
Bloodhounds were originally bred for large prey, and have been used to
track people since about the 16th century.  For smaller game, other
hounds were developed, with shorter legs and smaller size.  These type
of hounds cannot cover trails as old or as long as the Bloodhound.

Labradors and German Shepherds are often used in tracking.  They do
not do as well with older or longer trails, but are more than capable
of following trails within their limitations.  Also because they can
work off leash better than the Bloodhound can, they can work more
rapidly if there is a need for haste.

3.  Disaster search

Some SAR dogs are trained to search through rubble for people.  In
this scenario, the dog is not finding a specific person, as is the
case with tracking and trailing.  The dog is looking for any human
scent.  Avalanches, collapsed buildings, airplane and train crashes
are all examples of sites where these kind of dogs are employed.  Most
often, German Shepherds or Labradors are used for this kind of work:
these dogs work well off leash (which Bloodhounds do not) and are
suitably agile for scrambling around in the debris (which Bloodhounds
are not).

4.  Cadaver search

Dogs can be trained to find cadavers, new or old.  Some dogs are
employed on archeological digs to help locate old graves.  Other dogs
are used by law enforcement to find recently dead people, or to
collect all the bones found in an area.  Others find drowning victims.
This is a rapidly expanding field, with new methods of training
currently being developed.

4.  Related testing

Many SAR organizations will put together mock disaster sites and
evaluate dogs sent over the sites.  There are no standards or anything
like that except within a particular organization.

For tracking and trailing, AKC and ABC (American Bloodhound Club) have
a series of titles in tracking (TD, TDX) and trailing (MT, MTX).  ABC
is negotiating with the AKC to add the trailing titles to its standard
set.

5.  References

Bryson, Sandy.  _Search Dog Training_.  Third printing.  Boxwood
Press, 183 Ocean View Blvd., Pacific Grove, CA 93950.  1991 (c 1984).
ISBN: 0-910286-94-9.
  A well organized, comprehensive discussion of search dog training.
  Includes practical tips, discussion of search and rescue and the law
  and many other topics.

Davis, L. Wilson.  _Go Find!  Training Your Dog to Track_.  Ninth
printing, 1984.  Howell Book House, Inc., New York.  c1974.
ISBN: 0-87605-550-1 (hardcover).
  Blurb:  "Major L. Wilson Davis is America's recognized authority on
  Tracking -- named in September 1973 to the Obedience Advisory
  Committee of the AKC as its official consultant on Tracking and
  scent training for dogs.  This official status follows upon decades
  of recognized achievement in these phases of Obedience training.
  Following distinguished service with the K-9 Corps during WWII, he
  has been active in the Governmnent's program of using trained
  tracking dogs for the recovery of detonated missile parts in missile
  experimentation.  Major Davis was an AKC licensed judge for all
  classes of Obedience.  He is presently training director of the
  famous Oriole Dog Training Club of Baltimore.  He organized and
  headed the Baltimor City K-9 Corps, one of the finest in the
  country, and is often asked to lecture and advise police departments
  on the use of tracking dogs in law enforcement.  Major Davis is a
  recipient of the Quaker Oats Distinguished Service Award for his
  dedicated contributions to dog training."

Pearsall, Milo D. and Hugo Verbruggen, MD.  _Scent: Training to Track,
Search, and Rescue_.  Alpine Publications, Inc., Colorado.  1982.
ISBN: 0-931-866-11-1.
  Blurb: "The authors first look at the scientific qualities of scent
  -- what and how dogs smell and how environmental factors affect the
  track.  Then they use this background as a basis for training.
  Topics include the science of scent, kindergarden puppy tracking,
  tracking equipment, tracking tests, training to search, search and
  track, search and find, search and rescue, trail companion, scent
  and the law enforcement agency, first aid on the trail and much more."

Tolhurst, William D. with Lena F. Reed.  _Manhunters!  Hounds of the
Big T_.  Hound Dog Press, 10705 Woodland Avenue, Puyallup, WA 98373.
1984.  ISBN: 0-9617723-0-1 (hardcover).
  Tolhurst is a Search and Rescue volunteer in upstate New York.  This
  book recounts his experiences using bloodhounds in trailing.  Many
  fascinating stories.  Tolhurst includes a section on training a dog
  to locate dead bodies.


F.  Water Rescue Dogs.

[would love more history and references]

There are some dogs trained for water rescue.  Some dogs are trained
to deliver flotation devices to the person, others actually drag the
person out of the water.  The latter is most often done by
Newfoundlands, as they have the swimming ability and size to perform
such feats.

G.  Narcotics and Evidence Dogs.

This is commonly considered a subset of SAR.  Dogs can be trained to
alert (by barking, pointing, or pawing) on controlled substances such
as drugs, agricultural products (e.g., in customs or at borders), and
nearly anything else (for example, gunpowder (to detect guns), bomb
materials, arson materials).  Narcotic dogs are trained to search
through buildings, cars, and luggage for their scent.  They can be
trained to alert on more than one kind of drug, and can do so despite
ingenious efforts on the smuggler's part: dogs have been known to
locate drugs concealed in gasoline, rotting food, skunk oil, and many
other efforts.  They can be trained to discriminate between large and
small amounts: in fact some dogs are trained to whiff passing
vehicles; if it alerts on one, that vehicle can be stopped later and
searched without directly involving the dog and its handler.

Evidence dogs are trained to search for items bearing human scent,
sometimes specific human scent.  They are utilized in crime scenes to
find evidence thrown away by a suspect.  Such evidence can be later
used (if handled properly) by a Bloodhound to link the scent on it to
a suspect: several such cases have been deemed admissible evidence in
court.

Dogs that are trained to alert on contraband items are almost always
owned by law enforcement personnel, as these individuals can most
easily legally obtain small quantities of contraband to train their
dog with.  In other words, average citizens do not train narcotic dogs
because of legal difficulties.  The dog's training record must record
legal acquisition of contraband material used in training: if no such
record exists, or the dog does not have a training record, then its
evidence will not be accepted in court.  (In other words, don't try
this at home.  Similar problems exist for the cadaver dog: dead human
parts must be legally obtained.)


H.  Schutzhund.

My thanks to Michael Sierchio for this section.

1.  What is Schutzhund?

Schutzhund is a German word meaning "protection dog".  It refers to a
sport that focuses on developing and evaluating those traits in dogs
that make them more useful and happier companions to their owners.

Schutzhund is a dog training and breeding regimen developed originally
in the 20's by the Deutsches Shaeferhund Verein (German Shepherd Dog
Club), or SV, in order to maintain the working ability of the breed.
While the term Schutzhund means literally "protection dog", the
training involves work equally in tracking, obedience and protection.
In order to get a Schutzhund degree a dog must pass all three phases
of the work. Also, a working title (at least a SchH I) is required for
breed survey purposes, and in order to register an approved litter.

The first Schutzhund trial was held in Germany in 1901 to emphasize
the correct working temperament and ability in the German Shepherd
breed.  SV, the parent club of the breed, developed the Schutzhund
test as a way of maintaining reliable dogs with traits suitable for
breeding.

Many countries and working dog organizations have also adopted
Schutzhund as a sport and test of working performance. International
rules have been established by the Verein fuer Deutsche Hundesport
(VDH).  The first SchH trial in the U.S. was held in California in
1970.  In 1987 the U.S.A. alone sanctioned nearly 300 trials with a
total entry of 1,800 dog/handler teams.

Many breeds now participate in addition to GSDs.  While there may be
individual dogs of a particular breed that may be suitable for the
work, the following are most consistently able to perform: GSDs,
Belgian Malinois, Doberman Pinscher, Bouvier des Flandres, Rottweiler,
Tervuren, Boxer, Giant Schnauzer, etc.  Generally, these are larger
working breeds with strong prey and defense drives, and temperaments
suitable for the tasks of the training.  Under current rules fighting
breeds, such as Pit Bulls, Am Staffs, Bull Staffs, etc. are not
eligible to participate.

There are three major degrees awarded - SchH I, SchH II, and SchH III
-- in order of increasing difficulty.  SchH I (IPO I) is the
apprentice test.  A SchH III dog must demonstrate a high level of
performance, ability and courage.

The traits that make for a good Schutzhund candidate mostly are innate
characteristics that must be bred for.  Even among dogs bred out of
Schutzhund bitches and dogs, a minority have the ability to reach even
SchH I, and a small percentage will have the necessary drive,
intelligence and hardness to achieve a Sch III title. In addition to
breeding, early development is important.  The young pup should not be
subjected to strong corrections or experience being dominated by
another dog, and all training and play should end on a positive note,
with the pup "winning."

The IPO (International Pruefungsordnung) rules, under the auspices of
the FCI (Federation Internationale Cynologique), are similar to the
Schutzhund rules and the trials are run in the same manner, with the
exception that no evaluation of the fighting instincts, courage or
hardness of an IPO entrant is performed during the protection phase of
the trial.

(The following information on degrees and requirements is from the
United Schutzhund Clubs of America)

Degree                                            Min Age

B        Begleithunde                              12 months
         (Companion Dog)

FH       Faehrtenhundpruefung                      16 months
         (Advanced Tracking Dog Test)

AD       Ausdauerpruefung                          16 months
         (Endurance Test)

SchH A   Schutzhund Examination A                  18 months
SchH I   Schutzhund Examination I                  18 months
SchH II  Schutzhund Examination II                 19 months
SchH III Schutzhund Examination III                20 months

The maximum score in each of the three phases shall be 100 points.
Therefore, the highest possible score in a trial is 300 points.  A
degree shall be awarded only if a dog achieves at least 70 points in
Tracking and Obedience, and at least 80 points in Protection.