I sent Animal Planet an email yesterday..

[draggar]

One thing I really hate is people stating false and misleading information as fact and this one is just chock full of it.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SFf0IClzVNs&feature=related

Animal Planet's "Dogs 101: German Shepherd".

One of their opening statements is wrong (yep, right off the bat).

"was the original canine movie star"

Sorry, while Strongheart and Rin Tin Tin both were canine movie star pioneers and helped lead the way for success stories like Lassie and Benji, the GSD was NOT the first canine movie star.

That honor goes to a turn of the century border collie (presumed by some pictures) named "Jean" a.k.a. "The Vitagraph Dog". Jean was in 18 films between 1910 and 1913, even starring or co-starring in several of the films.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vitagraph_Dog
http://www.imdb.com/name/nm1255970/

As you notice Jean's last film was in 1913. Strongheart was born in 1917 and Rin Tin Tin was born in 1918.

At 2:25 they say "and in recent years, even white".

Again, this is wrong.
Here is a link to the pedigree for the first German shepherd (yes, you can trace any GSD back to him - this is how well they've tracked them):
http://www.pedigreedatabase.com/gsd/pedigree/1208.html

Look at the maternal grandfather:
http://www.pedigreedatabase.com/gsd/pedigree/8309.html

Granted - we're back into the "coninental shepherd" stage but that is a white shepherd. White shepherds have always been a part of the breed since the beginning but it was always considered a fault. It was even discouraged to the point that in the past, possibly even in recent years, white GSD puppies were culled at birth to hide that gene from the lines (I don't know why it was considered so dangerous).

2:50 - they only mention the Dutch attempting to cross breed wolves and GSDs and that it was a failure. While this is true there are two common GSD / wolf hybrids in existance today, one being the Czechoslovakian Vlcak (wolf dog). It is a wolf with the temperament of a German shepehrd. There were some successes.

4:20
"Heads the canine list with dog bites" this is true but there are two facts that are NEVER mentioned when this is.
1) German shepherds are the most popular breed in the world. Statistically, even a lower dog / bite ratio the GSD could still easily have far more bites than any other breed.

2) If someone broke into my house and my dog bit them in defence - that is still considered a bite and GSDs are the #1 dog in the US for protection work.

 

[DN BROKER]

well done

 

[Gerry]

Yeah, the bite thing is misleading...very misleading.

At Clark AFB in the Philippines (now closed) we had over 300 GSD. Probably about the same amount in Thailand, and perhaps 1200 at Lackland AFB.

It would be interesting to see the number of dogbites in privately owned canines vs. working canines.

Hell, our dogs were biting someone everyday in training. Sometimes their own handlers.

Unquestionably, dogs of the GSD lineage have been the number one working dog for police forces, military, customs, private security firms for decades.

And, unquestionably (in my opinion and experiences with many breeds) the most versatile, smartest, ease of training, best overall temperment I have ever worked with.

As for Animal Planet,

they may get some facts wrong, but this is a great show and provides much needed and factual information on dog breeds and which breed is best for a person, family, working, or children - companions, pets, show, protection.

 

[DomainsInc]

you must have a lot of free time on your hands.

 

[draggar]

It would be interesting to see the number of dogbites in privately owned canines vs. working canines.

I don't think when a police K9 bites a perp it isn't counted as a bite but a private / civilian residence with one a bite form protection is.

Hell, our dogs were biting someone everyday in training. Sometimes their own handlers.

I've been bitten by my own dogs - most of the time it is by accident and the rest of the time it is a protest bite (not really a bite but more like a mouth).

Unquestionably, dogs of the GSD lineage have been the number one working dog for police forces, military, customs, private security firms for decades.

And, unquestionably (in my opinion and experiences with many breeds) the most versatile, smartest, ease of training, best overall temperment I have ever worked with.

Many police and military will use Belgian shepherds (primarily malinois) for their work. You do get your best bang for the buck with those (13+ years of working with a Belgian as opposed to 7-10 with a GSD) but Belgians aren't easy to handle - definately NOT for the novice dog owner. When we worked wiht malinois rescue we spent more time talking people out of a malinois.

As for Animal Planet,

they may get some facts wrong, but this is a great show and provides much needed and factual information on dog breeds and which breed is best for a person, family, working, or children - companions, pets, show, protection.

True and I've seen many of their dogs 101 and most of them are accurate, it just irks me at how much misinformation was in the episode for the German shepherd.

you must have a lot of free time on your hands.

I've been doing a lot of studying on the history (and current destruction) of the German shepherd breed for a few years now and saldy there is a lot of damage being done about the breed, education, and its reputation.

 

[Gerry]

I don't think when a police K9 bites a perp it isn't counted as a bite but a private / civilian residence with one a bite form protection is.

I have a feeling the statistics are compiled by hospital records. Typically, a bite is reported to the county agency. Now, whether or not a police canine unit is reported in the same manner, I am not sure. I have a feeling it is recorded no differently as the coding for why someone is admitted to the hospital or ER is the same for any dog bite.

As for bites in this county, all dog bites reported to the county are pretty serious matters. A reported bite can get the dog taken away and quarantined. Naturally, serious injuries can get a dog put down.

Statistically, I can not recall the ranking of bites as by breed but recent counties in the surrounding area are considering bans on German Shepherds, Rotties, Chow Chow, Pit Bulls, and a couple more.

As for bites, I have been bitten so many times I lost count. That is part of raising and training dogs. Only one bite that I recall required surgery. And that was a German Shepherd biting completely through my thumb.

Ouch, dammit.

 

[draggar]

Wow, 36 hours to get an automated response?

Dear Viewer:
Thank you for contacting Animal Planet. We appreciate your correspondence
and for taking the time to share your thoughts and concerns with us about
Dogs 101.
In an effort to ensure the highest quality programming, comments such as
these are taken very seriously. Each and every comment is forwarded on to
our programming executives for review and consideration. Maintaining the
integrity of all of our networks is our primary goal. It is these types of
comments that contribute to creating change and improving our programming.
Again, thank you for contacting Animal Planet.
Sincerely,
Viewer Relations
Animal Planet

 

[Gerry]

Wow, 36 hours to get an automated response?

Doubtful it is an automated response but a nicely scripted response.

My worst dog-bite ever?

A 125 pound Rottie named Diablo (spanish for Devil).

Not only did he nearly crush my arm, I thought he was going to pull my arm out of my shoulder socket. I returned him to the owner and told the owner that this dog did not need to be attack trained.

Plus, I refused to train him further because if he was ever released to attack someone I did not to be dragged into court as an accessory to murder.

 

[draggar]

The difference between an "attack" trained dog and a "protection" trained one is protection training gies the handler (owner) control over the dog - including telling the dog to let go. Attack trained dogs are also more likely to turn on their owners.

Gallon was awesome at that. Around the blind he'd be a little messy but once he got the bite it was a full and good grip and one someone gave him the out command he was off the sleeve within a second.

My wife is constantly getting people asking her to "attack train" their dog. She refuses it but will help them train their dog for protection.

 

[Gerry]

The difference between an "attack" trained dog and a "protection" trained one is protection training gies the handler (owner) control over the dog - including telling the dog to let go. Attack trained dogs are also more likely to turn on their owners.

Gallon was awesome at that. Around the blind he'd be a little messy but once he got the bite it was a full and good grip and one someone gave him the out command he was off the sleeve within a second.

My wife is constantly getting people asking her to "attack train" their dog. She refuses it but will help them train their dog for protection.

I used the word "attack" to convey that this was not a show pooch. Back in the 70's, this was pretty much "the word" used. All dogs were trained to return to owners and come off an attack. Even in the military, we got away from "sentry" dogs because they did one thing and one thing only - rip up some ass.

At the close of the Vietnam war, the dogs went from "sentry" duty to "patrol" duty which was the precurser to using canine units for law enforcement. We trained the Customs and FBI teams as they were also Federal Government employees.

 

[INVIGOR]

...

 

[draggar]

Impressive research. You're either a REAL fan of dogs, or bored.

Shouldn't you be developing something?

LOL!

I can't really devlop while I'm at work.

Besides, this is after a few years worth of research.

 

[Raider]

As for bites, I have been bitten so many times I lost count.

Why am I not surprised?

 

[draggar]

Why am I not surprised?

Because it is a normal part of dog training especially when you're doing protection, schutzhund, police, or military training?

I do very little of the training and I've been bitten by my own dogs a few times.