K9 Dog Training

K9 Dog Training can mean a number of things, since the word K9 sounds so similar to canine, it is commonly used in civilian dog training facilities as part of their name. However, its origins come from dog based units in the military. Now the term is much more closely associated with police and military dogs.

Police K9 units are more common than ever. In the war against drugs, a dog's keen sense of smell is one of the law's greatest weapons. A properly trained drug sniffing dog can identify the smell of narcotics, even when blocked by overpowering smells, such as coffee grounds; an ability that a human certainly does not have.

Also in the police K9 units are especially useful in chases. While all officers undergo rigorous physical training, it is quite possible to out run them, but not quite as possible to outrun a German Shepherd that has undergone specialized K9 Dog Training with the police department.

These attack dogs are trained particularly well, and taught very specifically to never hurt, but to disable. By locking onto a foot or an arm and then dragging the suspected felon down, the dog allows his police partners to catch up and perform the arrest, without having to resort to the use of guns.

The military has also found use for its own brand of K9 Dog Training. Especially in the ongoing conflicts in the Middle East, the ability for a dog to sniff out explosives has proved invaluable for soldiers of all nationalities in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Reconnaissance is another specialty of the military pooch. The dogs are fitted with a head camera, a microphone, and a transmitter in their ears, so that ranking officers can issue commands to dogs and use them as a discrete mobile surveillance unit.

But if you think these dogs are all bark, you have an unpleasant surprise coming. These dogs undergo a heavy dose of Combat K9 Training, and some are even fitted with titanium caps to their teeth. In fact the Navy Seal unit that caught Osama Bin Laden had some of these warrior dogs with them during the operation. Now that's a dog whose bite is worse than its bark.

So whether your dog training needs are something as simple as basic sit and stay commands or prepping for major organization task forces, there is an appropriate dog training program for your needs.