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Thursday, September 24, 2009
Friday, July 10, 2009
NAPWDA National Workshop
From 21 June 09 through 26 June 09, The Signature K-9 Team attended the 2009 North American Police Work Dog (NAPWDA) National Workshop in Northbrook, Illinois. Over 200 K-9 Teams from Law Enforcement agencies across North America (including our friends from Canada), along with the Signature K-9 Team and other vendors, converged upon Northbrook for the week-long series of training, certification, workshops, and other events.
Dave and Phil represented our team, mingling amongst their customers from Local, County, State, and Federal Law Enforcement along with their four-footed partners.
Braving the murderous Illinois heat and humidity, severe thunderstorms, and swarms of mosquitoes, our heroes were among the few vendors to attend various training sites to showcase the latest and greatest Signature K-9 equipment and offer on-the-spot ordering assistance when sub-par equipment failed (and it did!). More than that, a drawing for our new Trunk Lid Organizer was held, which was given away to Jack Oldroyd of Elkhart PD! Laughing in the face of adversity, with a dab of sunscreen and some OFF! Spray, they bravely ventured where few vendors dared venture.
To further prove their worth to the Law Enforcement Community, Dave and Phil were the only vendors to gear up and tackle a 36ft Rappelling Tower! Dave, with his Army training, was already experienced in this exciting activity, while it was completely new to Phil. Dave, of course, flew down the tower with ease. With some encouragement from Dave and some training from the excellent CSX RRX group, Phil quickly learned the new skill and managed not to look too badly while doing it. Thus our boys distanced themselves from the vendors who only sat behind a table, and managed to get out where the rubber meets the road!
However, they didn’t stop there! To test some equipment and show off his decoying prowess, Dave suited up and assisted several departments in aggression training out by the lake. Brushing off crushing blows from their eager canine partners, he selflessly helped demonstrate the skills required of a decoy.
At the end of the week it was time to pack up and say goodbye. Yet again the Signature K-9 Team outshone the competition both in & out of the vendor’s area. Mission accomplished, an on to the next venue!
Dave and Phil represented our team, mingling amongst their customers from Local, County, State, and Federal Law Enforcement along with their four-footed partners.
Braving the murderous Illinois heat and humidity, severe thunderstorms, and swarms of mosquitoes, our heroes were among the few vendors to attend various training sites to showcase the latest and greatest Signature K-9 equipment and offer on-the-spot ordering assistance when sub-par equipment failed (and it did!). More than that, a drawing for our new Trunk Lid Organizer was held, which was given away to Jack Oldroyd of Elkhart PD! Laughing in the face of adversity, with a dab of sunscreen and some OFF! Spray, they bravely ventured where few vendors dared venture.
To further prove their worth to the Law Enforcement Community, Dave and Phil were the only vendors to gear up and tackle a 36ft Rappelling Tower! Dave, with his Army training, was already experienced in this exciting activity, while it was completely new to Phil. Dave, of course, flew down the tower with ease. With some encouragement from Dave and some training from the excellent CSX RRX group, Phil quickly learned the new skill and managed not to look too badly while doing it. Thus our boys distanced themselves from the vendors who only sat behind a table, and managed to get out where the rubber meets the road!
However, they didn’t stop there! To test some equipment and show off his decoying prowess, Dave suited up and assisted several departments in aggression training out by the lake. Brushing off crushing blows from their eager canine partners, he selflessly helped demonstrate the skills required of a decoy.
At the end of the week it was time to pack up and say goodbye. Yet again the Signature K-9 Team outshone the competition both in & out of the vendor’s area. Mission accomplished, an on to the next venue!
Tuesday, July 7, 2009
New Item! Modular Harness System
Signature K-9 LLC introduces a new line of modular harnesses. This the modular harness system (MHS) enables you to take any of our new 2 strap harnesses in the MHS line (Mod Patrol Harness, Mod Duty Harness, Mod Extreme Duty Harness and other harnesses coming over the next couple months) and convert them to a 3 strap harness with padded breast plate. This new addition to the Signature K9 line of equipment was designed by Matt Akenhead, who combined the needs of the client with the innovative craftsmanship that is synonymous with our name. Now each harness becomes more versatile and better able to perform for your many applications. They are lighter than the leather and biothane breast plate harnesses. The harnesses will be able to be purchased with and without the breastplate. The Modular Harness Breastplate includes :
- 1 3/4” jump rated nylon webbing
- Solid aluminum slides for a more adjustable fit
- Cordura nylon and spacer mesh breastplate for increased ventilation
- Velcro fixtures for a more secure fit.
- Available in Camel Tan, Ranger Green and Black.
- You can see these items on our website : Here
~The Signature K9 Team
Cruiser Trunk Lid Organizer
This Cruiser Trunk Lid Organizer has a practical design that you can use to make your life as a K9 Handler even easier. An organizer for your trunk lid to bring things to your hands when you need them. Just like having your duty belt set up with everything you need where you need it, we bring you trunk organization! Pulling the equipment to the top that you may need in a hurry: first aid, tracking harness and line, extra ammo...better yet, the platform we have built for this is MOLLE, so you can modify the organizer for your own needs. Easily installed in minutes, with screw driver, this organizer will fit Crown Victorias, Impalas, and several other models, please specify. Available in Coyote Brown, Ranger Green, ACU, and Black.
$159.95
Monday, June 1, 2009
New Items from Signature K9 for June 2009!!
Signature K9 is proud to present three new items to our inventory!!
Signature Series Puppy Drive Building Kit
The first item is our new Signature Series Puppy Drive Building Kit! This kit includes everything a new puppy owner would need in order to begin building drive in their young dog or puppy! This kit includes : a Flirt Pole, Kong on a String, Puppy Shammy, 12" Suit Tug, Three Handle Suit Wedge, Puppy Targeting Cuff, Suit Leg Tug, 1" Leather Collar, 2" Agitation Collar, 6ft Standard Obedience Leash, 1" x 15' Nylon Long Lead, and a Nylon Tracking Harness.
Signature Series Puppy Drive Building Kit
The first item is our new Signature Series Puppy Drive Building Kit! This kit includes everything a new puppy owner would need in order to begin building drive in their young dog or puppy! This kit includes : a Flirt Pole, Kong on a String, Puppy Shammy, 12" Suit Tug, Three Handle Suit Wedge, Puppy Targeting Cuff, Suit Leg Tug, 1" Leather Collar, 2" Agitation Collar, 6ft Standard Obedience Leash, 1" x 15' Nylon Long Lead, and a Nylon Tracking Harness.
Puppy Kit : $260.00
Nylon Tracking Harness with Breastplate
This versatile tracking harness is made with load rated two inch nylon webbing. It includes steel hardware and a two inch side release buckle for quick removal and fitting. It comes with a handle on the back and a padded breastplate with spacer mesh for maximum breathability. With almost half the weight of a leather agitation harness and twice the adjustment, this harness makes an excellent choice for a trainer and handler! This harness can fit down to a 35Ib Malinois all the way up to a 90Ib American Bulldog, with extra room to spare! This is one of our most innovative pieces to date!
3693 : $59.95
Padded Nylon Whip
This whip is 24 inches long with a 24 inch drop.
9623 : $29.95
~The Signature K9 Team
Wednesday, May 27, 2009
Trainer Interview -- Jerry Bradshaw
Tell us a little about your background. How did you get started with dogs? By accident. After an attempted break in at my home while I was in graduate school at UNC – Chapel Hill we had the police come and do a security check of our home, and they suggested getting a dog because of the hours we kept. Because I had never owned a dog in my life (got bitten by 3 dogs as a child – perhaps prophetic) and was frankly kind of scared of dogs, I reluctantly got a dog from a local animal shelter named Penny (who lived until 14). She was a little brown dog with stand up ears and a black face. Terrible watchdog. Sweetest dog on earth and the canine love of my life, though. So I did what any intelligent person would do, got the AKC encyclopedia and looked for a dog with good “guarding” instincts that looked exactly like Penny, and yes, that would be a Malinois. Found a breeder in Canada to sell me a “police reject” puppy. That reject was Arrow. I titled him to SchH 3 5 times and took him to 1996 USA Nationals 22nd place my first time at any kind of biog competition, before he had a career ending stroke that ended his competition career at 5 years old. After that I moved on to other K9 sports including the NAPD and then PSA where I titled 2 dogs to PSA 3. In the meantime as I was competing with Arrow, I started Tarheel Canine Training, Inc. in Sanford NC and began learning about police dogs. Incidentally I dropped out of my Ph.D. program to start my business, and although my family thought I was insane to give up 13 years of higher education, I couldn’t have been happier with my decision.
In your opinion how do sport and police dogs differ? Primarily in the end result skill set, and the fact that the stakes are a lot higher. A police dog has to be prepped to bite “for real” and no matter how much we brag on our sport dogs being “real” that isn’t their function, ultimately. In training there are more similarities than differences with respect to the bitework. The majority of the foundation training is exactly the same. A lot of the skill (say for a PSA dog and a police dog) are very similar. Lots of environmental deconditioning, lots of nerve, and many skills like call-offs, re-directs, outs, returns to cover, etc are the same.
What do you look for when evaluating a dog for either police or sport work? Do the requirements differ? I just wrote a blog on this, actually. To me, selection is more art than science. Some of the best dogs I know of probably would have failed a patrol dog test somewhere. In a classically aggressive dog I like strong prey, and solid defense that you can bring out in civil aggression. I like the defense to be committed, like as you stalk the dog and draw out the aggression, and you pass your hands near his mouth, he is all there at the end of the line, and you have a little fear in your heart that if you screw up, you know you are getting bit, hard, and he is pissed off! I like strong environmental nerves, but more important that what he has already seen, is enough socialization so that he has the ability to rebound if something throws him off. In a non-classically aggressive dog (the Prey Monster) I need to see enough clear headedness that he doesn’t get so prey blind that he can be brought back to earth from a high state of drive. Honestly, it is more art than science. For a police dog, I usually like the more lassically aggressive dog, because real defensive aggression causes a visceral effect on people who know nothing about dogs. Real aggression is kind of like the Supreme Court Justice Potter Stewart’s definition of pornography…..”I can’t tell you exactly what it is, but I know it when I see it.”
Why is compulsion necessary with all the wonderful results you can get from motivational methods? Where do you see compulsion fitting in to your training program and where does motivation fit in? Dog training isn’t something to “believe in.” it isn’t religion, it is an eclectic set of methods learned from both canine learning theory and experience applied to living creatures that are at their core all very similar, but in their earthly manifestations, are all somewhat different. To believe that one approach, one technology, is the answer is in my opinion self-delusional. But people like to be “right” and “morally superior” and all that, so we have built quasi-religious sects in dog training, You have the e-collar religion, and the purely positive religion, and then you have people who take a more eclectic approach. I love motivational training. On some dogs it is amazing what a skilled positive trainer can achieve. I’d rather train with motivation. In most of what we do, where the competing motivations to the task are relatively low because we have selected dogs that are extreme in their retrieve and hunting drives, we can rely on motivational training to carry us all the way to the end of the training task for the most part – such as in detection training and tracking But I also know, with any organism with a free will – and a dog has free will to make decisions in his interest based on his temperament and the drives he needs to satisfy – limits have to be set and enforced. Wild animals learn from both motivation and compulsion. When the young Bear cub messes with the porcupine, he does it only once. Unpleasant consequences teach important lessons. Having had Malinois all my life, I am so used to dealing with strong willed dogs that often defy the motivational plan because they see some prey or something in their environment that calls up a defensive reaction, I see the utility in thoughtful compulsion to achieve an understanding of boundaries. I see the need for both. Dog training is not the place to get your religion, although so many are true believers. I don’t participate in these doctrinal disputes. I look at results. In economics there was a theorem which says that resources flow to their most highly valued use. So, if we look at why most of the top competitors in almost every canine endeavor, such as field trials or Schutzhund or PSA, they all use highly driven dogs to take advantage of the motivational aspect of learning, but they almost to a person also use e-collars. If purely motivational methods alone could earn top scores over an eclectic approach, any competitor who wants to win would be doing that exclusively, because people who want to win do not get married to one method, they do what wins. So, if pure motivation would produce a better overall performance, all else equal, all top competitors would do it, because all that is important to a competitor is to place 1st. That resource (technology) would be adopted immediately. It hasn’t happened. Eclectic approaches win. I’ll stay open minded, but eclectic.
Why is it important to teach targeting? Where is the best place to teach a dog to target in police applications and why is that location the best? Targeting makes sense for a number of reasons. In police work you want the dog reacting on habit, not out there thinking about what he is going to grip. In my opinion, lack of targeting increases the likelihood that a dog will not engage (because engaging for a dog with no targeting requires the dog to think before acting), and increases the likelihood the dog will get fended off the bite, and legally it induces the dog to make multiple grips that have to be explained because he “bites everywhere” but isn’t committed to any one or two places. I could write a book on this, but I have seen it so often in PSA, dogs with no targeting (and I mean general targeting not teaching the dog to bite only one spot – arms inside and outside, and shins front and back for example) get run off the bite almost every single time they encounter opposition they are unfamiliar with from the decoy. Plus it makes people want to decoy for your dog. If your dog will bite a hand as easily as he will bite a bicep, Nobody wants to catch your dog, so he gets less good training.
What advice would you give a beginner with aspirations of learning about working dogs? Don’t become an expert too soon. I see young trainers all the time who have to show how good they are, and they run their mouths, instead of watching and listening. You learn nothing by talking. If you have been working dogs for say 2 years, you know nothing, compared to most of the top level trainers. You may know more than your neighbor, but so does everyone else. Put your ego in check, even if you are talented. Learning takes place by observing and asking questions, and trying to make theoretical sense of what you are seeing. Also, experiment with your training. Try things, and allow yourself to fail and learn from that. There are so many trainers who always have to be right (in their minds) when they suggest something about how a dog should be trained. My approach is to observe and make use of some trial and error. I always learn something from my mistakes and failures.
In your book Controlled Aggression you mention drive channeling. Briefly, how does this apply to make training a dog under the stress of bite work easier? Thanks for the “briefly” because I wrote 3 chapters on drive channeling in Controlled Aggression. I think this is one of the concepts I learned very early on in Schutzhund training. Pressure (threat) will stress a dog, and stress accumulates, so you must balance pressure with relief otherwise you risk going ultimately into avoidance. Relief comes for the working dog through his prey drive. Stress comes through activating his defense drive. Many of the problems I see with police dogs or working dogs in general, is an incomplete foundation. Dogs cannot unload their stress unless they are taught they can do so. Many dogs cannot be obedient in bitework until they can clear their heads of stress. Many out problems are never going to be solved through force, because the dog is unable to channel out of the defensive mood where he is fighting for his survival, so more pain simply causes more defensive mood and the cycle gets worse, all the while the dog develops an unbelievable tolerance to pain.
What method(s) do you utilize to train an out, or correct an out problem? First make sure the foundation is good. The dog can channel his drives well. Then, use good technique. You can trade toys all you want, but the real work of out training comes when the dog has a confrontation with a man. I think a combination of three things makes a difference for the police dog: (1) A properly Trained forced out on command using the back-tie method I describe in Controlled Aggression, (2) Bringing good man-orientation training into the training, where the dog learns to drop dead prey such as a slipped sleeve, to re-engage the man for a continued fight, and (3) good foundation of redirect training, leading to a call-off. A sound methodology fits together to make a logically consistent whole. All of these are explained in detail in Controlled Aggression.
Where does obedience fit into your police dog training program? I often get some flack for this. For the last 30 years of police dog training, a compulsive method has been used – negative reinforcement learning with positive punishment to maintain the response. This is the oldest technology we have. If you are doing this training, you probably have a set of encyclopedias taking up space in your house that you use to look stuff up in, while the rest of us type a word into Google on our blackberries. That technology worked when the police dogs we used donated nasty nervy aggressive middle-pack patrol dogs that needed to have a handle put on them quick, or you were getting a KNPV dog that thought he was king of the world. Not that I agree with this approach for the latter necessarily, because a lot of Americans got eaten up at the airport when they tried to show Marco the PH 1 who was the “alpha” right out of the box. Of course the Malinois got blamed for being unstable. Fast forward to now, and we have a lot of 11 and 12 month old dogs coming into training, because world wide demand is so high, dogs don’t get to get to 18 months or 24 months before they are bought by police dog trainers and classes. This method breaks these precocious young dogs down. They are not mentally ready for compulsive obedience. They had tremendous drive that can be shaped though. So we usually teach obedience last. In our detection dogs we teach very little obedience at all. I see guys hammer their single purpose detection dogs with obedience and what does it accomplish? I’ll tell you what, it accomplishes nothing! Yes you need obedience, and especially for a patrol dog, but if you teach motivationally before you compulse, the dog has a chance to avoid a lot of the stress that can cross over into independent skills, like detection, searching, etc. “Stop or I will tell my dog to sit!” Just doesn’t catch criminals. If I could see one thing happen in to police dog world it would be to get every K9 cop to go to a protection sport trial and see how many civilians who train dogs for a hobby have more control using an eclectic, stress-relieving approach to obedience, maximizing the opportunity to reward rather than force.
What advice can you give to those handlers looking to select a puppy to train? What do you look for in a puppy and do you look at different things based on the handlers long term plan? Do you look at the parents or pedigree and how important are they in your decision? Pedigrees don’t bite. In a puppy I look for a bold, happy, social, prey driven dog that will play tug on a flirt pole (Signature K9 should make and sell good flirt poles – no charge for that idea – you don’t want people making homemade sleeves do you? – btw if this makes it in the newsletter I will be very excited). All the rest is bullshit. The pain tolerance toe squeezing nonsense of the puppy tests…..I have never seen it make a difference. Get a puppy from someone who has bred the parents or similar lines before. Just know that about 80% of pups don’t work out. But the most important thing you can do for your pup is to get him to 3 new places every week from the day you get him home, and play with him in those places.
What do you do to keep up a finished dog or are they ever finished? Break all your skills training down into self-contained segments. Keep training the segments, and keep training your fundamentals. Training is never finished. Don’t be afraid to go back to basics no matter where your dog is in his career. Simple and clean skills are the best. Challenge your dog, but don’t push him to his limits in every session. Let him win easy sometimes, just don’t tell him you did.
What is the silliest thing you ever did in Pet Smart? I went in to buy a Kong, and in the check-out line, I found a little book on how to housetrain a dog in 7 days, written no doubt by someone who once housetrained a dog. I asked the 17 year old clerk if they had these on a CD that I could play for my dog to listen to, because he couldn’t sit still long enough to finish a book, and she said, “I’m sorry sir, I think we only have the books.” God bless her. If you are gong to be around dogs, make sure you have a sense of humor.
What is your most embarrassing dog training moment? I trained a pet boxer for obedience, all on leash only. The dog was getting out of the house because the kids would forget to close the door, and so the dog got out into the neighborhood to romp, and the poor guy would chase this boxer for an hour. The guy was a Major in the Army at Ft. Bragg. Super nice family. So he calls me up and says, well, I guess I should have gotten the full off leash program, because if I have to chase this dog around the neighborhood again I am going to strangle him. So I take the dog back to do an e-collar program with him. Here is the scene for the first day of training. I am in my front yard of my kennel. Nobody else around, just me and “Langley” the boxer. I have a leash on him and I want to test the level on the collar. To free my hands I take the leash and tie it to my belt loop (not wearing a belt that day). Old A1 70 Tri-tronics collar with the plugs that go into the collar. Green is level 5, the hottest, all the way down to I think level 1 which was red maybe. I put in a level 2. I tap the collar (all continuous stimulation collars then), and the boxer jumps straight in the air, lands, and takes off, the leash pulls my belt loop, popping the button on my shorts, my shorts go to my ankles, feet go out from under me, and I go on the ground on my back. So there I am, Professional Dog Trainer, pants at my ankles, staring up at the North Carolina blue sky, the boxer is at the end of the leash, looking at me like he was just attacked by a Bear, and I started laughing at myself, thankful that I was all alone. The boxer came over and licked my face, and started wagging his ass like they do. It took him a minute but he got the joke….and we went down to a level one after that.
FIN
In your opinion how do sport and police dogs differ? Primarily in the end result skill set, and the fact that the stakes are a lot higher. A police dog has to be prepped to bite “for real” and no matter how much we brag on our sport dogs being “real” that isn’t their function, ultimately. In training there are more similarities than differences with respect to the bitework. The majority of the foundation training is exactly the same. A lot of the skill (say for a PSA dog and a police dog) are very similar. Lots of environmental deconditioning, lots of nerve, and many skills like call-offs, re-directs, outs, returns to cover, etc are the same.
What do you look for when evaluating a dog for either police or sport work? Do the requirements differ? I just wrote a blog on this, actually. To me, selection is more art than science. Some of the best dogs I know of probably would have failed a patrol dog test somewhere. In a classically aggressive dog I like strong prey, and solid defense that you can bring out in civil aggression. I like the defense to be committed, like as you stalk the dog and draw out the aggression, and you pass your hands near his mouth, he is all there at the end of the line, and you have a little fear in your heart that if you screw up, you know you are getting bit, hard, and he is pissed off! I like strong environmental nerves, but more important that what he has already seen, is enough socialization so that he has the ability to rebound if something throws him off. In a non-classically aggressive dog (the Prey Monster) I need to see enough clear headedness that he doesn’t get so prey blind that he can be brought back to earth from a high state of drive. Honestly, it is more art than science. For a police dog, I usually like the more lassically aggressive dog, because real defensive aggression causes a visceral effect on people who know nothing about dogs. Real aggression is kind of like the Supreme Court Justice Potter Stewart’s definition of pornography…..”I can’t tell you exactly what it is, but I know it when I see it.”
Why is compulsion necessary with all the wonderful results you can get from motivational methods? Where do you see compulsion fitting in to your training program and where does motivation fit in? Dog training isn’t something to “believe in.” it isn’t religion, it is an eclectic set of methods learned from both canine learning theory and experience applied to living creatures that are at their core all very similar, but in their earthly manifestations, are all somewhat different. To believe that one approach, one technology, is the answer is in my opinion self-delusional. But people like to be “right” and “morally superior” and all that, so we have built quasi-religious sects in dog training, You have the e-collar religion, and the purely positive religion, and then you have people who take a more eclectic approach. I love motivational training. On some dogs it is amazing what a skilled positive trainer can achieve. I’d rather train with motivation. In most of what we do, where the competing motivations to the task are relatively low because we have selected dogs that are extreme in their retrieve and hunting drives, we can rely on motivational training to carry us all the way to the end of the training task for the most part – such as in detection training and tracking But I also know, with any organism with a free will – and a dog has free will to make decisions in his interest based on his temperament and the drives he needs to satisfy – limits have to be set and enforced. Wild animals learn from both motivation and compulsion. When the young Bear cub messes with the porcupine, he does it only once. Unpleasant consequences teach important lessons. Having had Malinois all my life, I am so used to dealing with strong willed dogs that often defy the motivational plan because they see some prey or something in their environment that calls up a defensive reaction, I see the utility in thoughtful compulsion to achieve an understanding of boundaries. I see the need for both. Dog training is not the place to get your religion, although so many are true believers. I don’t participate in these doctrinal disputes. I look at results. In economics there was a theorem which says that resources flow to their most highly valued use. So, if we look at why most of the top competitors in almost every canine endeavor, such as field trials or Schutzhund or PSA, they all use highly driven dogs to take advantage of the motivational aspect of learning, but they almost to a person also use e-collars. If purely motivational methods alone could earn top scores over an eclectic approach, any competitor who wants to win would be doing that exclusively, because people who want to win do not get married to one method, they do what wins. So, if pure motivation would produce a better overall performance, all else equal, all top competitors would do it, because all that is important to a competitor is to place 1st. That resource (technology) would be adopted immediately. It hasn’t happened. Eclectic approaches win. I’ll stay open minded, but eclectic.
Why is it important to teach targeting? Where is the best place to teach a dog to target in police applications and why is that location the best? Targeting makes sense for a number of reasons. In police work you want the dog reacting on habit, not out there thinking about what he is going to grip. In my opinion, lack of targeting increases the likelihood that a dog will not engage (because engaging for a dog with no targeting requires the dog to think before acting), and increases the likelihood the dog will get fended off the bite, and legally it induces the dog to make multiple grips that have to be explained because he “bites everywhere” but isn’t committed to any one or two places. I could write a book on this, but I have seen it so often in PSA, dogs with no targeting (and I mean general targeting not teaching the dog to bite only one spot – arms inside and outside, and shins front and back for example) get run off the bite almost every single time they encounter opposition they are unfamiliar with from the decoy. Plus it makes people want to decoy for your dog. If your dog will bite a hand as easily as he will bite a bicep, Nobody wants to catch your dog, so he gets less good training.
What advice would you give a beginner with aspirations of learning about working dogs? Don’t become an expert too soon. I see young trainers all the time who have to show how good they are, and they run their mouths, instead of watching and listening. You learn nothing by talking. If you have been working dogs for say 2 years, you know nothing, compared to most of the top level trainers. You may know more than your neighbor, but so does everyone else. Put your ego in check, even if you are talented. Learning takes place by observing and asking questions, and trying to make theoretical sense of what you are seeing. Also, experiment with your training. Try things, and allow yourself to fail and learn from that. There are so many trainers who always have to be right (in their minds) when they suggest something about how a dog should be trained. My approach is to observe and make use of some trial and error. I always learn something from my mistakes and failures.
In your book Controlled Aggression you mention drive channeling. Briefly, how does this apply to make training a dog under the stress of bite work easier? Thanks for the “briefly” because I wrote 3 chapters on drive channeling in Controlled Aggression. I think this is one of the concepts I learned very early on in Schutzhund training. Pressure (threat) will stress a dog, and stress accumulates, so you must balance pressure with relief otherwise you risk going ultimately into avoidance. Relief comes for the working dog through his prey drive. Stress comes through activating his defense drive. Many of the problems I see with police dogs or working dogs in general, is an incomplete foundation. Dogs cannot unload their stress unless they are taught they can do so. Many dogs cannot be obedient in bitework until they can clear their heads of stress. Many out problems are never going to be solved through force, because the dog is unable to channel out of the defensive mood where he is fighting for his survival, so more pain simply causes more defensive mood and the cycle gets worse, all the while the dog develops an unbelievable tolerance to pain.
What method(s) do you utilize to train an out, or correct an out problem? First make sure the foundation is good. The dog can channel his drives well. Then, use good technique. You can trade toys all you want, but the real work of out training comes when the dog has a confrontation with a man. I think a combination of three things makes a difference for the police dog: (1) A properly Trained forced out on command using the back-tie method I describe in Controlled Aggression, (2) Bringing good man-orientation training into the training, where the dog learns to drop dead prey such as a slipped sleeve, to re-engage the man for a continued fight, and (3) good foundation of redirect training, leading to a call-off. A sound methodology fits together to make a logically consistent whole. All of these are explained in detail in Controlled Aggression.
Where does obedience fit into your police dog training program? I often get some flack for this. For the last 30 years of police dog training, a compulsive method has been used – negative reinforcement learning with positive punishment to maintain the response. This is the oldest technology we have. If you are doing this training, you probably have a set of encyclopedias taking up space in your house that you use to look stuff up in, while the rest of us type a word into Google on our blackberries. That technology worked when the police dogs we used donated nasty nervy aggressive middle-pack patrol dogs that needed to have a handle put on them quick, or you were getting a KNPV dog that thought he was king of the world. Not that I agree with this approach for the latter necessarily, because a lot of Americans got eaten up at the airport when they tried to show Marco the PH 1 who was the “alpha” right out of the box. Of course the Malinois got blamed for being unstable. Fast forward to now, and we have a lot of 11 and 12 month old dogs coming into training, because world wide demand is so high, dogs don’t get to get to 18 months or 24 months before they are bought by police dog trainers and classes. This method breaks these precocious young dogs down. They are not mentally ready for compulsive obedience. They had tremendous drive that can be shaped though. So we usually teach obedience last. In our detection dogs we teach very little obedience at all. I see guys hammer their single purpose detection dogs with obedience and what does it accomplish? I’ll tell you what, it accomplishes nothing! Yes you need obedience, and especially for a patrol dog, but if you teach motivationally before you compulse, the dog has a chance to avoid a lot of the stress that can cross over into independent skills, like detection, searching, etc. “Stop or I will tell my dog to sit!” Just doesn’t catch criminals. If I could see one thing happen in to police dog world it would be to get every K9 cop to go to a protection sport trial and see how many civilians who train dogs for a hobby have more control using an eclectic, stress-relieving approach to obedience, maximizing the opportunity to reward rather than force.
What advice can you give to those handlers looking to select a puppy to train? What do you look for in a puppy and do you look at different things based on the handlers long term plan? Do you look at the parents or pedigree and how important are they in your decision? Pedigrees don’t bite. In a puppy I look for a bold, happy, social, prey driven dog that will play tug on a flirt pole (Signature K9 should make and sell good flirt poles – no charge for that idea – you don’t want people making homemade sleeves do you? – btw if this makes it in the newsletter I will be very excited). All the rest is bullshit. The pain tolerance toe squeezing nonsense of the puppy tests…..I have never seen it make a difference. Get a puppy from someone who has bred the parents or similar lines before. Just know that about 80% of pups don’t work out. But the most important thing you can do for your pup is to get him to 3 new places every week from the day you get him home, and play with him in those places.
What do you do to keep up a finished dog or are they ever finished? Break all your skills training down into self-contained segments. Keep training the segments, and keep training your fundamentals. Training is never finished. Don’t be afraid to go back to basics no matter where your dog is in his career. Simple and clean skills are the best. Challenge your dog, but don’t push him to his limits in every session. Let him win easy sometimes, just don’t tell him you did.
What is the silliest thing you ever did in Pet Smart? I went in to buy a Kong, and in the check-out line, I found a little book on how to housetrain a dog in 7 days, written no doubt by someone who once housetrained a dog. I asked the 17 year old clerk if they had these on a CD that I could play for my dog to listen to, because he couldn’t sit still long enough to finish a book, and she said, “I’m sorry sir, I think we only have the books.” God bless her. If you are gong to be around dogs, make sure you have a sense of humor.
What is your most embarrassing dog training moment? I trained a pet boxer for obedience, all on leash only. The dog was getting out of the house because the kids would forget to close the door, and so the dog got out into the neighborhood to romp, and the poor guy would chase this boxer for an hour. The guy was a Major in the Army at Ft. Bragg. Super nice family. So he calls me up and says, well, I guess I should have gotten the full off leash program, because if I have to chase this dog around the neighborhood again I am going to strangle him. So I take the dog back to do an e-collar program with him. Here is the scene for the first day of training. I am in my front yard of my kennel. Nobody else around, just me and “Langley” the boxer. I have a leash on him and I want to test the level on the collar. To free my hands I take the leash and tie it to my belt loop (not wearing a belt that day). Old A1 70 Tri-tronics collar with the plugs that go into the collar. Green is level 5, the hottest, all the way down to I think level 1 which was red maybe. I put in a level 2. I tap the collar (all continuous stimulation collars then), and the boxer jumps straight in the air, lands, and takes off, the leash pulls my belt loop, popping the button on my shorts, my shorts go to my ankles, feet go out from under me, and I go on the ground on my back. So there I am, Professional Dog Trainer, pants at my ankles, staring up at the North Carolina blue sky, the boxer is at the end of the leash, looking at me like he was just attacked by a Bear, and I started laughing at myself, thankful that I was all alone. The boxer came over and licked my face, and started wagging his ass like they do. It took him a minute but he got the joke….and we went down to a level one after that.
FIN
Tuesday, May 5, 2009
H.I.T.S. Seminar; Louisville, KY
The dates were the 20th-23rd of April and Louisville, Kentucky was the location. This year’s Police K9 Magazine H.I.T.S. with keynote speaker LTC Dave Grossman had its biggest year yet with over 500 members of the K9 law enforcement community from around the world.
LTC Grossman was followed up by a list of some of the most influential trainers in the United States. The following topics were presented by the following instructors. “The Power of the Reward” : Jerry Bradshaw; “K-9 Communication” : Mike Colton; “Narcotics Dog Case Law” : Ted Daus; “Veterinary Issues” : Dr. Kevin Fitzgerald; “Canine Legal Update” : Terry Fleck; “Raising The Bar: Bulletproofing Your Training Regimen” : Ron Gunton; “Detector Dog Problem Solving” : Ken Licklider; “Hidden Vehicle Compartments” : Rob Lukason; “Suspect Tactics /Perimeter Containment” : Jack Schonely; “Critical Incidents” : Dave Stambaugh; “Narcotics Dog Recordkeeping” : Andy Weiman; “Odor: A Scientific Truth” : David Adebimpe Ph.D.; “K-9 Supervisor’s Class” : Trent Crump; “Decoys And Aggression” Stephen Mackenzie; “Interdiction Techniques And Signs” Eddie Dutchover; “Awareness Orientation To Explosive Characteristics for Explosive Detection K9 Handlers” : Ryan Morris; “High-Risk Tactical Tracking” : Tracy Bowling; “Urban Tracking” : Steve White (New Instructor).
Signature K9 rose to the challenge of supporting the biggest H.I.T.S. crowd to date by unveiling our newest product, The Cruiser Trunk Lid Organizer. Designed to make the worst trunk orderly and bring equipment to hand quickly, the organizer drew many attendees into the booth for a closer look. Along with the organizer, we displayed our new first aid kit (ER in a Bag) and several other items, old and new.
We saw a lot of old friends and met some new ones, which seems to be the general idea at similar events. What was different and inspiring to us about H.I.T.S. was hearing about the great instruction, and seeing the largest gathering of K9 folks we have ever seen. We are looking forward to the rest of 2009!!!
LTC Grossman was followed up by a list of some of the most influential trainers in the United States. The following topics were presented by the following instructors. “The Power of the Reward” : Jerry Bradshaw; “K-9 Communication” : Mike Colton; “Narcotics Dog Case Law” : Ted Daus; “Veterinary Issues” : Dr. Kevin Fitzgerald; “Canine Legal Update” : Terry Fleck; “Raising The Bar: Bulletproofing Your Training Regimen” : Ron Gunton; “Detector Dog Problem Solving” : Ken Licklider; “Hidden Vehicle Compartments” : Rob Lukason; “Suspect Tactics /Perimeter Containment” : Jack Schonely; “Critical Incidents” : Dave Stambaugh; “Narcotics Dog Recordkeeping” : Andy Weiman; “Odor: A Scientific Truth” : David Adebimpe Ph.D.; “K-9 Supervisor’s Class” : Trent Crump; “Decoys And Aggression” Stephen Mackenzie; “Interdiction Techniques And Signs” Eddie Dutchover; “Awareness Orientation To Explosive Characteristics for Explosive Detection K9 Handlers” : Ryan Morris; “High-Risk Tactical Tracking” : Tracy Bowling; “Urban Tracking” : Steve White (New Instructor).
Signature K9 rose to the challenge of supporting the biggest H.I.T.S. crowd to date by unveiling our newest product, The Cruiser Trunk Lid Organizer. Designed to make the worst trunk orderly and bring equipment to hand quickly, the organizer drew many attendees into the booth for a closer look. Along with the organizer, we displayed our new first aid kit (ER in a Bag) and several other items, old and new.
We saw a lot of old friends and met some new ones, which seems to be the general idea at similar events. What was different and inspiring to us about H.I.T.S. was hearing about the great instruction, and seeing the largest gathering of K9 folks we have ever seen. We are looking forward to the rest of 2009!!!
Monday, April 27, 2009
Jerry Bradshaw Seminar at FT. Belvoir
On April 14-16, Signature K9 hosted a Police K9 / MWD Decoy Seminar at FT. Belvoir for the MWD Handlers at that base and at FT. Meade. The event was an absolute success!!
All three days of the seminar started out with some classroom instruction. Following that alot of practical time was spent working dogs in the gym. The first day the first part of the practical exercises was spent working on proper sleeve catching techniques. Jerry and Dave worked with the students one on one on how to properly present a sleeve and how to catch dogs. Some time was also spent on properly presenting an arm for suit work. Towards the end of the day Jerry spoke about civil aggression and defense in dogs, and demonstarted to the handlers how to work on brining out some aggression in the dogs while stalking them. He also spoke on the importance of being able to read the dog's body language and barking in order to make sure that too much stress was not being put on the dog at once.
Jerry Speaking to the attendees
Dave working on sleeve presentation with one of the handlers.
Jerry working on sleeve presentation with once of the handlers.
An escape bite on the suit.
Sleeve presentation for an escape bite.
Working with a dog on an inside bite.
On the second day the practical work started out with showing the handlers how to eliminate equipment orientation in dogs, which involved using several different kinds of equipment. Starting with giving a bite in the soft sleeve, followed by a bite in the suit, followed by a bite on a hidden sleeve was one of the methods used. Some of the dogs did a real nice job, while with some a bit of time was spent on how to work up to that point using and slipping sleeves one by one.
Dave giving the dog a bite on a hidden sleeve after a bite on a soft sleeve.
One of the MWD Handlers doing Decoy Work with two sleeves.
A handler and decoy working on one of the K9s grip.
Object Guarding.
After that Jerry went into some problem solving with the "out" command. Some methods discussed were having the helper give the correction with a second leash as well as redirects to reinforce the behavior. Additionally some time was spent working on the call-off exercise with some of the dogs. Something that Jerry had the handlers do differently that was interesting was rather then rewarding the dog with a 'release' to go to the decoy when the call off was succesfully performed, he had the Decoy come up to the dog and reward him from the point that he stopped.
One of the K9s being redirected onto another Decoy.
Another Redirected Bite.
Rewarding the dog for a Call Off.
The last part of the day was spent working on passive bites in a hidden sleeve. Some time was spent working on hidden sleeve mechanics while the rest was spent working on getting the dog to alert on the passive suspect, and to make passive bites. Jerry discussed timing on the part of the Decoy and the Handlers.
Jerry taking a passive bite from one of the K9s.
A passive bite out from in the bathroom.
The third day was mostly spent in recap. Some time was spent discussing muzzle work and equipment. The first of half of the day was spent in the gym going over Call Outs, Outs, as well as working some more on the suit mechanics of some of the decoys.
Reward for a succesful Call Out
Working on Suit Presentation.
Taking bites in the suit.
The last half of the day was spent in one of the barraks working on searching the buildngs. Jerry worked with the handlers on how to build the alert behavior in the dog without cues, and also worked on lessening the equipment orientation in these scenarios.
K9 alerting on one of the rooms.
Reward bite after the alert.
The seminar was an overall success with a great deal of improvment seen in both the handlers and the dogs. Jerry did a fantastic job of working with the handlers to improve their decoy skills, and along with Dave alot of good information and instruction was passed along.
This is a video compilation of some of the highlights from the seminar including images and video. The video clips included are : Eliminating Equipment Orienation; Proper Sleeve Orientation; Passive Bites; Outing and Redirects; Passive Bites; Suit Presentation and Catching; Call Off; Eliminating Equipment Orientation; Alerting Behavior; Proper Sleeve Presentation for an Escape Bite; and a Passive Bite in a Bathroom.
More images can also be seen on our Facebook page, located Here
SignatureK9
All three days of the seminar started out with some classroom instruction. Following that alot of practical time was spent working dogs in the gym. The first day the first part of the practical exercises was spent working on proper sleeve catching techniques. Jerry and Dave worked with the students one on one on how to properly present a sleeve and how to catch dogs. Some time was also spent on properly presenting an arm for suit work. Towards the end of the day Jerry spoke about civil aggression and defense in dogs, and demonstarted to the handlers how to work on brining out some aggression in the dogs while stalking them. He also spoke on the importance of being able to read the dog's body language and barking in order to make sure that too much stress was not being put on the dog at once.
Jerry Speaking to the attendees
Dave working on sleeve presentation with one of the handlers.
Jerry working on sleeve presentation with once of the handlers.
An escape bite on the suit.
Sleeve presentation for an escape bite.
Working with a dog on an inside bite.
On the second day the practical work started out with showing the handlers how to eliminate equipment orientation in dogs, which involved using several different kinds of equipment. Starting with giving a bite in the soft sleeve, followed by a bite in the suit, followed by a bite on a hidden sleeve was one of the methods used. Some of the dogs did a real nice job, while with some a bit of time was spent on how to work up to that point using and slipping sleeves one by one.
Dave giving the dog a bite on a hidden sleeve after a bite on a soft sleeve.
One of the MWD Handlers doing Decoy Work with two sleeves.
A handler and decoy working on one of the K9s grip.
Object Guarding.
After that Jerry went into some problem solving with the "out" command. Some methods discussed were having the helper give the correction with a second leash as well as redirects to reinforce the behavior. Additionally some time was spent working on the call-off exercise with some of the dogs. Something that Jerry had the handlers do differently that was interesting was rather then rewarding the dog with a 'release' to go to the decoy when the call off was succesfully performed, he had the Decoy come up to the dog and reward him from the point that he stopped.
One of the K9s being redirected onto another Decoy.
Another Redirected Bite.
Rewarding the dog for a Call Off.
The last part of the day was spent working on passive bites in a hidden sleeve. Some time was spent working on hidden sleeve mechanics while the rest was spent working on getting the dog to alert on the passive suspect, and to make passive bites. Jerry discussed timing on the part of the Decoy and the Handlers.
Jerry taking a passive bite from one of the K9s.
A passive bite out from in the bathroom.
The third day was mostly spent in recap. Some time was spent discussing muzzle work and equipment. The first of half of the day was spent in the gym going over Call Outs, Outs, as well as working some more on the suit mechanics of some of the decoys.
Reward for a succesful Call Out
Working on Suit Presentation.
Taking bites in the suit.
The last half of the day was spent in one of the barraks working on searching the buildngs. Jerry worked with the handlers on how to build the alert behavior in the dog without cues, and also worked on lessening the equipment orientation in these scenarios.
K9 alerting on one of the rooms.
Reward bite after the alert.
The seminar was an overall success with a great deal of improvment seen in both the handlers and the dogs. Jerry did a fantastic job of working with the handlers to improve their decoy skills, and along with Dave alot of good information and instruction was passed along.
This is a video compilation of some of the highlights from the seminar including images and video. The video clips included are : Eliminating Equipment Orienation; Proper Sleeve Orientation; Passive Bites; Outing and Redirects; Passive Bites; Suit Presentation and Catching; Call Off; Eliminating Equipment Orientation; Alerting Behavior; Proper Sleeve Presentation for an Escape Bite; and a Passive Bite in a Bathroom.
More images can also be seen on our Facebook page, located Here
SignatureK9
Thursday, April 2, 2009
Signature K9 Supporting Dog Sports!!
Signature K9 is proud to present our new Club Cash Back Program to Protection Sports Association. We at Signature K9 would like to show our thanks for your support by providing you the training equipment you need at a reduced cost. The program applies to all members of PSA in good standing.
The mechanics of the program are simple. You call Signature k9 to register, then place your order, and from there forward (as long as you are a member in good standing) you receive 10% off your purchase. THE BENEFITS DON’T STOP THERE!!! Your local PSA club will receive an additional 2% gross cash back and the national PSA club will receive 1% gross cash back. Cash back rewards will be actual cash paid back to your club and PSA right before nationals, each year in September. Your local and national organizations can use the money how they see fit to purchase more equipment, an AC unit and a tent for your decoys, or whatever is needed!!! You and your club directors will determine that, not us. You can give back to your sport, while getting a good discount for yourself.
While this program is starting out with PSA, we are also interested in hearing back from other sports and clubs. If this program is something you feel your national organization or local club might be interested in, please let us know! We'd love to hear from you!
Our products and customer service are second to none. Take a look at our website and see what you think. Whether it’s a single-item order by a trainer/handler or an order for an entire club, we give all our customers the same great service. Call, e-mail or stop by; we’ll take care of you!!!
Thanks.
Train hard, and be safe!!
The Signature K-9 Team
The mechanics of the program are simple. You call Signature k9 to register, then place your order, and from there forward (as long as you are a member in good standing) you receive 10% off your purchase. THE BENEFITS DON’T STOP THERE!!! Your local PSA club will receive an additional 2% gross cash back and the national PSA club will receive 1% gross cash back. Cash back rewards will be actual cash paid back to your club and PSA right before nationals, each year in September. Your local and national organizations can use the money how they see fit to purchase more equipment, an AC unit and a tent for your decoys, or whatever is needed!!! You and your club directors will determine that, not us. You can give back to your sport, while getting a good discount for yourself.
While this program is starting out with PSA, we are also interested in hearing back from other sports and clubs. If this program is something you feel your national organization or local club might be interested in, please let us know! We'd love to hear from you!
Our products and customer service are second to none. Take a look at our website and see what you think. Whether it’s a single-item order by a trainer/handler or an order for an entire club, we give all our customers the same great service. Call, e-mail or stop by; we’ll take care of you!!!
Thanks.
Train hard, and be safe!!
The Signature K-9 Team
Monday, March 23, 2009
Friday, March 20, 2009
Signature K9 Upcoming Events!
It’s 2009 and we are continuing to move forward. Signature K9 just completed an appearance at the Invictus Law Dog Seminar in Las Vegas. We saw some old friends and met some new ones. Coming up we have several more events scheduled for the 2009 calendar year where you as a consumer can come take a look at us and what we are all about, in a venue close to you:
March 29 - April 3, USPCA PD1 Field Trials Valdosta, GA, Region 1 & Region 22
May 10 - 15 Fort Leonard Wood, MO TRADOC Working Dog Competition
April 14 - 16 US Army, Ft. Belvoir, Patrol Dog Seminar with Tarheel Canine Training, Inc.
April 20 - 23 April, H.I.T.S. Louisville, KY
If you or your organization would like to have us attend a working dog event, please let us know. No event is too small; however, get in early to avoid scheduling conflicts!! Please contact Dave Colborn, our sales manager at d.colborn@signaturek9.com.
March 29 - April 3, USPCA PD1 Field Trials Valdosta, GA, Region 1 & Region 22
May 10 - 15 Fort Leonard Wood, MO TRADOC Working Dog Competition
April 14 - 16 US Army, Ft. Belvoir, Patrol Dog Seminar with Tarheel Canine Training, Inc.
April 20 - 23 April, H.I.T.S. Louisville, KY
If you or your organization would like to have us attend a working dog event, please let us know. No event is too small; however, get in early to avoid scheduling conflicts!! Please contact Dave Colborn, our sales manager at d.colborn@signaturek9.com.
Monday, March 9, 2009
New! New! SignatureK9 Harness!
Good news to K9 folks everywhere. Signature K9 is announcing the release of two new harnesses; the Original Load Bearing and the Ultimate Load Bearing Harnesses. Designed for the rigorous uses of the US military, these harnesses have been tried and tested in environments throughout the US and around the world. Designed to be load bearing harnesses for work or training, they’re made of top quality materials available in the United States. These products are hand-crafted by folks at sewing machines less than 100 feet away. These are folks I know and folks that you can trust to get it right, that’s our guarantee. Available colors: black, coyote, ranger green, and ACU.
Wednesday, March 4, 2009
Introduction to Signature K9
As dog handlers and trainers, we believe it is our obligation and duty to provide quality products and superior Customer Service to you, our US Military and Law Enforcement Personnel. We take this task very seriously and are committed to helping you find the proper gear to make you and your working dog more effective and safe while performing your duties. Our commitment is to provide you with the best working dog equipment available today and to continue to work on new product development to bring you the most innovative equipment in the future.
Here at Signature K9 we do our best to provide our customers with the best possible equipment for handlers and their canines. We offer a variety of equipment from tactical gear for the K9 and Handler, to sport and training gear, as well as gear and equipment for the pet owner. Right now we are working on updating our website to better serve you, and currently new items are being added and stored. Check out our New Items tab for items that have just been added to, or call us if there is an item you are interested in but that you don't see on our website. We carry manufacturers such as Kalispel, CamelBak, Battlelab, Herm Sprenger, Coastal, as well as our own line of Signature K9 equipment and Signature Tactical Gear.
You can contact us at :
Phone : 1-866-820-3647
International Customers : 1-540-904-5282
Online : www.signaturek9.com
Or come visit us at :
Who We Are :
Matt Akenhead
Matt Akenhead began his passion for dogs early in life. He won his first AKC obedience title in 1980. He has since attended
An ardent and committed trainer, Matt has taken his professional passion to the field. Competing in seven national championships, with four different dogs, from 2001 through 2005, Matt has placed in the top five dogs on four different occasions. He has won 40 titles with 8 different dogs in three different venues, including Service Dogs of America to Schutzhund.
Matt was one of the first four working dog judges to be certified by the United Kennel Club (UKC). He is also the youngest judge to be certified in that division. His professional memberships include: WDA,
Continuous education and mentor relationships with some of the best trainers and decoys in North America and
Dave Colborn
Dave has been training and handling working dogs for the United States Army and civilian contract companies since completing the DoD Working Dog School in 1995. He has had several assignments in the
Most recently he has been working as the sales manager of Signature K9, LLC.
He has employed dogs as a handler, and dog teams as a supervisor, in demanding situations involving all facets of police, prison and military K9 work. He was instrumental in the planning and distribution of K9 assets in the Afghanistan/Middle Eastern theatre in 2002, while working as an explosive detector dog handler and kennel master concurrently. Dave has been involved in the training of hundreds of working dog teams in preparation for their Department of the Army certification Dave has provided explosive detector support to high profile dignitaries such as the President and Vice President of the United States, Chairman of the Joint Chief of Staff, U.S. Secretaries of State, military officials, and foreign dignitaries with no incidents. He completed work in
Matt Cox
If you’ve given us a call in the past couple of years, odds are pretty good that you’re already familiar with Matt. Joining SignatureK9 in June of 2006 as an equipment maker and as computer support, he quickly learned the business and the members of the Canine Community. Taking over the roles of customer service and warehouse operations in January of 2007, Matt has played an important role in us becoming the efficient, service oriented, and proudest manufacturer in the business.
Matt’s background lies outside the dog world. Before joining our team and moving from
Tammy Gordon
Tammy started working with Signature K9 in October 2007. Before that she was going to school at
Angel White
Angel started with Signature K9 in February of 2008. Prior to working here she worked as a manager at Bojangles in
Catherine Helfgott
Cate is the most recent addition to the Signature K9 team. Before coming to Signature K9 she was a student at Virginia Tech studying Animal Science with an Equine Emphasis, Biology, and Leadership Studies. In December 2008 she graduated with a BS in Agricultural Science and a commission in the Virginia Army National Guard. She is now a 2LT with a Medical Unit and is serving as a Platoon Leader.
Cate adopted her first dog in 2006 and dogs quickly became one of her passions. She now has two shepherds that she is training in protection sport, obedience and herding. She has also has had some experience handling dogs in the conformation ring. She teaches and assists pet dog obedience classes in
Her short experiences have given her a solid working knowledge of the gear necessary for the working dog or sport handler. Her experiences have also given her a lot of varied experience in different methods of dog training.
One of her favorite parts about working at Signature K9 is the opportunity to work with and speak to a variety of experienced K9 handlers and trainers, and to continue to learn more about working dogs and training.
~Signature K9
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