How to Train an Attack Dog

As man's best friend, dogs have a loyalty and natural tendency to protect their masters. With the proper training methods, you can teach a dog to attack on command. An attack dog's mission is to provide personal protection against a threat or danger. In the end, you can have a trustworthy and lasting companion who guards you against any potential harm. Read on to learn more.

Difficulty: Challenging

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• Leash
• Dog treats
• Bite suit
• Helper (if available)

1. Choose a breed that works best as an attack dog. Some breeds such as German shepherds and rottweilers are easier to train than other breeds.

2. Train the dog in submission commands such as "sit," "stay" and "heel." This teaches the dog to obey the sound of your voice. Later, this helps to train the dog to attack when given the command. It cannot learn to move until you give the command.

3. Teach the dog to be indifferent to strangers and other dogs.

4. Start with on-leash training but advance to off-leash. Choose a single word for "attack" and one for "stop". Be consistent. Give slack to the leash when giving the attack command, and pull it when giving the stop command. Work toward having the dog obey the commands without the leash controlling it.

5. Develop the dog's bite. Start with a stick, and move into a bite suit. Train the dog to bite on the arms and legs of an attacker to best immobilize the person.

6. Simulate attacks with the help of another person in a bite suit. Issue commands, and reward the dog when it responds accordingly. Once it has mastered them, train it to respond without issuing the commands, based on it only seeing you under attack. The dog must be taught to attack on its own initiative if, for example, the owner is unconscious and cannot issue a command.

Tips & Warnings

• Advanced attack training is not for amateurs. Seek the assistance of a professional. Your local yellow pages directory is a good place to look for one.
• Contact your local police K-9 unit for suggestions about training attack dogs.
• Don't let the dog be distracted from its job as an attack dog. Don't allow it to accept treats from a stranger, or let it approach another dog in heat.
• Beware of the legal consequences of training dogs to attack.
• Look up Dog Owner Liability laws for your state.

Resources

• Find dog training videos at Squidoo.com.
• Get dog training materials at seeFIDO.com.
• Check YellowPages.com for a dog training expert near you.

[spilot]

on 5/23/2008 at step 4, when i give my dog the attack order, how do i make him actually go to the target and attack it ? do i make my assistant hit the dog, or do i push the dog in the direction of the target ? please reply asap... thank you

[spilot]

on 5/23/2008 at step 4.. when i give the attack command, how will i make the dog actually go and attack the target.. should i make the target hit the dog, or do i push it in that direction ? please reply ASAP....

[Doni]

on 5/20/2008 And once you have trained a dog to attack, what happens when he attacks someone and you are not there to call him off? I do not believe that training a dog to attack is a wise move. I think that your statement "The dog must be taught to attack on its own initiative if, for example, the owner is unconscious and cannot issue a command" is particularly irresponsible. It is allowing the dog to attack when you are not issuing the command. I also know of numerous stories of individuals who have collapsed because of medical conditions and emergency personnel were not able to help the individual because their dogs wouldn't let them near them.

Children under the age of 12 are the most frequent victims of protection dogs. After that you have individuals who were not there as any form of threat but were perceived to be a threat by the dog. It is actually very rare for a dog trained for pr

[Doni]

on 5/20/2008 And once you have trained a dog to attack, what happens when he attacks someone and you are not there to call him off? I do not believe that training a dog to attack is a wise move. I think that your statement "The dog must be taught to attack on its own initiative if, for example, the owner is unconscious and cannot issue a command" is particularly irresponsible. It is allowing the dog to attack when you are not issuing the command. I also know of numerous stories of individuals who have collapsed because of medical conditions and emergency personnel were not able to help the individual because their dogs wouldn't let them near them.

Children under the age of 12 are the most frequent victims of protection dogs. After that you have individuals who were not there as any form of threat but were perceived to be a threat by the dog. It is actually very rare for a dog trained for pr

[Doni]

on 5/20/2008 And once you have trained a dog to attack, what happens when he attacks someone and you are not there to call him off? I do not believe that training a dog to attack is a wise move. I think that your statement "The dog must be taught to attack on its own initiative if, for example, the owner is unconscious and cannot issue a command" is particularly irresponsible. It is allowing the dog to attack when you are not issuing the command. I also know of numerous stories of individuals who have collapsed because of medical conditions and emergency personnel were not able to help the individual because their dogs wouldn't let them near them.

Children under the age of 12 are the most frequent victims of protection dogs. After that you have individuals who were not there as any form of threat but were perceived to be a threat by the dog. It is actually very rare for a dog trained for pr