Service Dog

RexsMom

Notable member
As of lately, I noticed a lot of people keep telling me to train Rex as a service dog for my epilepsy. I personally think it can be too late at this point (a year and a half old). But I have considered because I am unable to drive & have to walk everywhere. It would be really helpful to have him with me while going to places alone for peace of mind where such a large majority of people don't know what to do during a seizure.

Does anyone use their Doberman (or any dog!) as a service dog? What did you go through to train them?

I know you can buy those "Service Dog" or "In Training" vests anywhere online, but to me it feels like people are cheating or an easy excuse to bring your dog anywhere. Even though I think Rex would do fine in very public areas. If you use one, do you get questioned a lot?
 
I personally think it can be too late at this point (a year and a half old).


I don't think so. IMHO, it's never too late to train a dog. If nothing else it will teach you some things to train your next dog.


Does anyone use their Doberman (or any dog!) as a service dog?



Yes, my girl is my mobility dog. She has been a GREAT help to me and allowed me to be a lot more independent than I thought possible.



I know you can buy those "Service Dog" or "In Training" vests anywhere online, but to me it feels like people are cheating or an easy excuse to bring your dog anywhere. Even though I think Rex would do fine in very public areas. If you use one, do you get questioned a lot?


For me the hardest part is finding someone to help you with training if you already have the dog. Most want to pick the dog for you.

I do get questioned A LOT. The best thing you can do is educate yourself on service dogs. Take a look at the link I sent you in a pm awhile back. Study it and know it backwards and forwards because the knowledge given there can make your life easier with service dog.
I will also add I get lots of fear because of the misinformation about dobermans. Hollywood paints an awful picture of dobies and that translates to tons of fear for people. I remember the first time I went in an elevator with Rue. The people that were pinned against the wall or actually got off because they were afraid they were going to be eaten. :rolleyes:

Yes, the "cheaters" will make your life challenging. :mad: I almost wish you had to have a prescription for a vest.
When I first started training with Rue it was frustrating (actually still is) to see the cheaters because the dogs were never trained and the owners would allow behavior that should NEVER happen. On lookers thought it was cute to have the dog come up and beg for pets or food. I couldn't allow that because Rue didn't need the distractions. People were offended and made nasty comments about me and my dog. OOOOOOOOhhhhhhhh the stories I could tell about just how stupid people can be!
 
Not too old, Rex starts training next month for service work and he’s over 2 years old! He’s going to the same training facility as Trixie at the same time. We were originally going to do it at a non profit for disabled veterans, however I quickly withdrew my application from them as I used them for boarding and they physically abused him.
 
I know nothing about training a service dog...but I can attest to age maybe not being a large issue when training a dog. We have taken a couple guys in as re homes...both in the five year range and they both had some bad habits to break..but impressed the heck out of us the things the kids could teach them to do with some time and effort.

We have a 4.5 fiver year old that has needed to go back to square one a few weeks ago...because of some behavior issues that cropped up and tho a lot of what are working with is in his "muscle memory" we are re working how he works with us, his focus and new words as commands.....and there are some changes he is having to learn to re program his muscle memory.

We are building on what is in muscle memory to expand his command word base...and tho he is a red haired stubborn cuss....he's picking it all up pretty quick...even when we change up things up on him.

I think he's proving.... the "can't teach an old dog, new tricks".....only applies to humans :laughing::smiley:
 
Dobes can make excellent service dogs anybody tells you otherwise tell & show them this...
Service Dogs | ADPEF

By 1951, over 1,000 Pathfinder Dobermans had been placed with blind owners. The normal cost for these dogs was $200 to cover the cost of the care of the dog for four months of training. This was the only way Glenn could help as many blind people as he did. He sunk just about everything he made in his drug store into the school. He also donated many dogs to those who simply could not pay and in 1945, he offered dogs free to blinded veterans.

Pathfinder dogs were in demand right up to June 25, 1951, when Glenn Staines suffered a massive stroke which left him nearly blind. He died on July 7, 1951, at the age of 64. His obituary from the annual Doberman issue of Dog News 1951 follows;


Good luck with SD training
MR
 
It’s not too late! Most Service Dogs trained by organizations don't even begin training for their specific job/task until over a year old. Up until then, it’s mostly public access training, manners, basic obedience, and socialization.

Find, specifically, service dog trainers in your area. Because like you said, most organizations want to provide the dog they had their own puppy raisers raise, and they don’t train dogs already owned.

Yes, there are cheaters who work the system but don’t make that your concern. Let karma handle them.

For now, focus on your rights as a person in need of a tool for your disability. Know them well because ignorant people will try to challenge you and deny your right to public access with your service dog in training. SDiT have the same rights as finished Service Dogs. That is your right as you begin to train, whether you have found someone to help you teach him to alert you yet or not.

Vests are not necessary for service dogs, but can be helpful to make people aware your dog is not a pet when it has that on, he is a tool and not to be bothered and distracted. Sometimes it also helps a dog know it’s time to work. If you need a little confidence boost, Amazon sells some handy pamphlets for you to hand out that state the federal laws and rights of SDiT, SD, and their handlers in case anyone questions you. Public access with your now SDiT is your right. Please take advantage of it!
 
I personally think it can be too late at this point (a year and a half old)

Was talking to a woman who works in my local pet store today who also works with a group who trains assistance dogs....asked her if there was a "cut off age" for starting training...she said they have worked with dogs as old as three and had great results. She said it depends on the breed and how well trained they are when they start the assistance training, so it might be worth getting in touch with someone who can help you get Rex started!
 
Hey I actually need help on this topic. Due to my medical disability connected to my military service I have been recommended by my physician to get a service dog. After searching around I found out due to Covid majority of service dog programs are back ordered, so I decided to purchase a dog from a breeder and have him trained. Now since I haven’t owned a dog since I was a child I decided to do some research and landed on the Doberman breed. After watching numerous of videos, as well as visiting multiple websites I learned that Dobermans are highly intelligent, easily trainable as well as just a dope dog making them excellent service dogs. I then searched for a breeder and found a great local one and moved onto trainers. Mutts on a mission was listed on the ADI website and was decently close so I selected them. However after a few weeks into the process of getting my new pup trained, they are now refusing because it is a Doberman. I have asked for an exact reason, examples of incidents, and or proof of where it says on their site they can deny training a dog simply because of its breed to no avail. I have not yet received my dog, therefore nether Mutts on a mission nor a veterinarian has even been able to perform a temperament test and yet they are still denying him. This is completely upsetting to me and seems illegal or discriminatory. I am writing asking for help on how to deal with this. Yes I will be taking my business elsewhere but this definitely feels like an ethics issue. If someone could please contact me with any advice on this matter that would be greatly appreciated, thank you.
 
I don't have answers for you, but I will say that the breeder really does need to have a good handle on temperament in their breeding - titles in show, obedience, sports, things that show the dog IS trainable especially in social situations with lots of people and dogs and especially a softer attitude toward general public. The Doberman breed can be very suspicious, growling or barking at people or dogs minding their own business. This is genetic & what they were originally bred to do. Much of this has been watered down & most American lines are very social and friendly to strangers. But when they aren't it's hard wired in them & not easy to train it out of them. So many people just say PASS as they don't want to take a chance on not being able to make the kind of dog that you are dreaming of, or worse yet, the dog gets defensive of your space if someone reaches out to help you. I know @GennyB will have better answers, and I know there are Dobermans out there that would be over the top for what you need.
 
I don't have answers for you, but I will say that the breeder really does need to have a good handle on temperament in their breeding - titles in show, obedience, sports, things that show the dog IS trainable especially in social situations with lots of people and dogs and especially a softer attitude toward general public. The Doberman breed can be very suspicious, growling or barking at people or dogs minding their own business. This is genetic & what they were originally bred to do. Much of this has been watered down & most American lines are very social and friendly to strangers. But when they aren't it's hard wired in them & not easy to train it out of them. So many people just say PASS as they don't want to take a chance on not being able to make the kind of dog that you are dreaming of, or worse yet, the dog gets defensive of your space if someone reaches out to help you. I know @GennyB will have better answers, and I know there are Dobermans out there that would be over the top for what you need.
I appreciate your response. Honestly what has me most upset is that they didn't even give this new pup a chance. I responded and told them that if he were to fail a temperance test than yea sure I totally understand, but to deny the pup sight unseen is just crazy to me. I totally get that they were initially bred for guard dog and other working dog things like that but like you said in 2021 there's more house dobermans (that I have seen) that are completely pussy cats for a lack of better terminology than vicious super barking dogs that they are portrayed to be. But I am still new at this and just find it unfair. But once again thank you for your reply
 
Honestly what has me most upset is that they didn't even give this new pup a chance.
You'll probably find that to be very common. Most service dog training facilities want to pick the pup for themselves.
I have no way to prove this as it's just a gut feeling, I think the "look" of the dog plays a HUGE part. Yes they will call it temperament but I call that BALONEY! I had my girl evaluated several places and NO ONE wanted to touch her. I ended up getting really frustrated and with the help of friends and family ended up training her myself.
You will probably be at a disadvantage training your pup simply because you haven't been in the dog world. If I were you I would start with a list of what you would need the dog to do. Then lots of research on dog behavior and trainers. I have NO doubt you (with some help) could get a pup trained. Just break what you need down into easy to train steps. Once all the steps are trained, put them together to get the task you need.
 
What most people don’t know is Mars was a full-fledged service dog. His duties included:

1. On-Site security blanket. As a fellow veteran with PTSD Mars was trained to read my moods/emotions and either utilize his Velcro Dobie nature to assure me of safety in my surroundings and/or to go off lead and enter buildings and assure me it was safe to enter.

2. Respiratory monitoring. This is the job he did mainly at night, as I suffer from having had a lobectomy and severe sleep apnea and refuse a c-pap machine Mars became my c-pap. At night while sleeping and even during the day while awake concentrating hard on something I have a tendency to stop breathing. Mars would utilize multiple methods to restart this vital function. Some of his methods for this, like nudging me with his nose or paw massaging my back he was trained to do. Other methods he had, such as dropping a ball next to me and then barking super loud in my face as I slept were his own little shortcuts with self chosen rewards.

3. Anti-despressant. The hardest part of depression is forcing yourself outside into social settings. Mars would literally force me into those settings. A simple walk with Mars was never simple, he was literally loved by every person who met him and he simply had to say hi and introduce himself, forcing me to talk to complete strangers multiple times a day. A trip to the gas station was never a 2 min stop. Mars has to take me inside and show me off, we had to do the full tour of EVERY aisle and of course, Mars had to impersonate the cashier whenever possible.

4. 911 communications. Mars was taught since it was just him and I how to use the phone for 911 and communicate if they were needed. While he was trained for this I’m thankful he never had to use it beyond his annual certifications. Yes, many large cities have a program for this.

I’ve seen many threads over the years where people question utilizing a Dobie as a service dog. Straight up, as someone who’s had 3 service dogs over the past 30 years, Mars was the best qualified for the tasks he was needed for. As a pup he picked up his obedience and socializing skills in a snap, housebreaking him was almost natural as he didn’t want to embarrass himself with an accident it seemed. The innate ability he possessed to read my moods and act accordingly to ensure my complete sense of safety coupled with his natural desire to be that annoying Velcro Dobie lean dog while finding shortcuts and even sometimes new ways to complete tasks has me convinced as a person who relies on a service dog or day to day life that the European Dobermann (I’ve never had an American Dobermann) is by far the number one choice for the job.

Training your pup to complete his tasks will be far easier than you can imagine. Just start with obedience and socializing from day one and never let up on either, especially the socializing part.
 
All I can say is................WOW!!! So many different areas that these Dobes excel in. They are the most adaptable of breeds and that "thinking" talent allows them to improve on their training. I am impressed!
 

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