Questions - We recently had remote door openers installed in our cars. We have never used these before and are in disagreement about how to train for their use. I think the dog should still need a verbal cue that it is okay to leave the car; the other handlers think he should come out automatically if the door popper is activated. Have any of your trainers developed a good way to use this device effectively?

Answer - Denzel Lukens replies: We train our dogs to recall to the handler. We start with door pops with the handler in sight and call the dog to “heel.” We move on to door pops with the handler out of sight and then calling the dog to a “heel.”

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Question - Do you have any good ideas to get a dog to range out during an area search? I have had a 3-year-old Dutch Shepherd for two years. We had a lot of trouble getting him through our initial school, as he would not recall or release with consistency. We had to use mostly compulsion to train him. Now when I send him out off-lead on a search, he gets frantic and will not go more than about 5 feet away from me. It is as though he is expecting to be corrected.

Answer - Ron Gunton replies: It sounds like you’ve hit the nail on the head, and that he is expecting to be corrected. What you will need to do is teach him that there are times he is allowed to work out away from you.

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Question - Recently I was at a public demo with a handler from another agency. We both had our dogs there for the public to see. He was letting everyone pet his dog, and the dog did not mind at all. I was trained not to let civilians pet my dog, as it would make him “soft.” The other handler’s dog has been a great street dog and yet has been very social with everyone. My question to your experts is: Does letting other people pet your dog hurt the dog’s working abilities?

Answer - Brad Smith replies: I think you’ve seen, firsthand, the answer for yourself. The short answer is: No. If the dog has the proper temperament, anyone should be able to pet him, as long as you supervise the interaction.

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Question - I am just starting to train my second dog. He is a 2-year-old imported Malinois. He is very high drive, but still quite social. Everyone who has seen the dog tells me they wish they had him. At work, he is good at pretty much everything and is very mellow in the car. The problem occurs when I put him in his dog run or crate. He runs in circles nonstop. I thought maybe after a while he would calm down and go to sleep but he does it for hours. I even set up a video camera to watch what he does when I am not there and he never stops. In a crate, he spins, and in a dog run, he paces. He loses weight every time he is kenneled for more than a day or two. Any ideas how I might calm him down?

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Question - Recently, I was at a seminar and watched handlers from a specific department use their dogs during scenarios. One of the handlers had a so-called engagement command. He could give his dog the command and the dog would bite the person, regardless of what the person was doing. He said the command was good to have with passive suspects in tactical situations. Have your trainers heard of this? How do you train it?

Answer - Brad Smith replies: I agree 100 percent that you should have an override or a “bite” command, for the reason you just mentioned: for a passive suspect who is noncompliant but not physically resisting in the normal way.

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Question - I have a three-year-old Dutch Shepherd that is certified through NPCA for patrol and narcotics. He is high-drive and has over-the-top toy drive. Overall, he is a good dog, but pretty stubborn. The biggest issue I have right now with him is he goes over the top whenever we do a narc search. He gets so excited that he starts barking and spinning, etc., making it very hard to get him to search. I have tried throwing a Kong for him before we search to work off a little steam, but that just makes him even more excited. Any time I get him ready to do a narc search, he does this, and it seems to be getting worse. I have done obedience work and made him stop barking, no problem, but it has not transferred over to narc searches. He is a very hard dog, and I know that trying to physically correct him is not the answer (I think he likes it!) Any suggestions to take him down a few notches so he will search in a calm, clear-headed manner?
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