Lately there has been an increase in the number of reports of police K9s that have been killed or seriously injured in the field.  This is why Canine Tactical is on a mission!  Many of these could have been avoided with the appropriate training!

Traditionally, handlers are only taught sport dog tactics in their basic handler’s course. This myopic approach results in subpar results and can cause serious injury or death.

Canine Tactical of Iowa’s approach centers on the principle that handlers must embrace that they are an officer first and that incorporating a K9 partner in all high risk situations isn’t the answer.   This is because it can lead to a wide array of experiences that most are not prepared to undergo.  It also puts the K9 in situations that might make it difficult to recover. Working dogs are not going to magically be successful in high risk situations on their own without the sound judgment of a prepared and focused handler.

Don’t bring a dog to a gun fight; don’t bring a dog to a knife fight.  If you are unsure, don’t deploy; but if you do, be prepared and set your K9 up for success.

This is why implementing effective K9 tactics training is critical to K9 survival in the field.

Today’s police K9 certifications across the board are based on sport dog tactics. In addition, these certifications are often a missed opportunity to judge handlers on their knowledge of tactics; a missed opportunity to judge handlers on the sound practices that determine when and where to implement their K9; and a missed opportunity to judge the most effective and safest usage of electronic collar devices.

This is exactly why Canine Tactical of Iowa provides training and education that goes beyond the sport dog tactics!   At Canine Tactical of Iowa, we provide the extensive and thorough hands-on training that prepares handlers for a multitude of real-life situations, including but not limited to, ones that are considered high risk.

Be on the lookout for Canine Tactical’s next article!   It will breakdown the difference between working dog drive versus sport dog drive.

Next months newsletter:  Working Dogs vs Sport Dogs.