A few days ago, a podcast by Martin Rütter and colleagues circulated online. The interviewee is a young woman with relevant experience in IGP (International Utility Dog) and Mondioring, as well as a good communication style. Martin Rütter's position is simplistic: the protection dog as a weapon, and the protection dog enthusiast often portrayed as an alcoholic. He initially stated that breeds like Malinois "and other rockets" would naturally protect people without needing specific protection dog training. However, he later asserted that society doesn't need dogs that chase after a running person only to bite them.
We've all heard the claims that the sport makes dogs dangerous, even weapons. Personally, I always vehemently reject this accusation. However, I must admit that a few isolated examples from my own dogs are not very convincing.
Without having yet undertaken any conclusive research, I have at least found more than the mere assumptions usually cited: a dissertation by Roman Mikus, "Statistical Evaluation of Expert Reports on Dogs with Biting Incidents in Bavaria," from 2006. The evaluation is so clear that I can limit myself to pure quotations:
"Regarding the use of the dogs, it was found that 87.6% of the dogs that came to the attention of authorities are family dogs or are considered 'companions' by their owners. A possible reason for the high prevalence of these dogs could be a lack of guidance, leadership, and control of the dog. (p. 65)" ...
"Based on the above, it was surprising that dogs who had attended dog training schools ranked second among dogs exhibiting problematic behavior (males 34.5%, females 22%). GOLD investigated 16 dog training schools in Bavaria and found that the majority of trainers at these schools had acquired their qualifications primarily through seminars and internships and were not specialized in problem dogs. (p. 66)"
"Dogs trained as guard dogs made up a small percentage of the results (males 2.2%; females 0%). This shows that well-trained sporting and guard dogs do not pose a potential danger. (p. 66)"
