From: n51ls801@ncsuvm.cc.ncsu.edu (David Austin )
Subject: Dogs & Home/Nbhd Security (LONG)
Organization: NCSU
Date: Wed, 14 Oct 1992 17:08:04 GMT

Dogs and Home/Neighborhood Security: an 'Executive 
Summary' for the smart, busy, but relatively dog
ignorant person who regards a dog as a family member

During the summer, I did some research on this 
topic. What follows is a summary of (what I thought 
was) the best advice and information I could find.  
Many thanks to all those who responded so fully to 
earlier netnews inquiries on the subject. Comments 
welcome.

I. General Information on Choosing a Dog

     The following books would be helpful to anyone 
thinking about getting any kind of dog. Prices and 
ISBN numbers are from the current BOOKS IN PRINT.  
Most are available in public libraries.
 
     Before considering what kind of dog to get, I'd 
recommend reading the wise, compassionate, massively 
well-informed and elegantly written
 
The Monks of New Skete, THE ART OF RAISING A PUPPY 
(Little Brown, 1991) $17.95 hardcover ISBN 0-316-
57839-8
 
     To help in choosing a particular breed (or mix 
thereof), both of these books can be useful in 
alerting you to relevant physical and behavioral 
characteristics:
 
Benjamin Hart, DVM, PhD and Lynette A. Hart, PhD, 
THE PERFECT PUPPY (WH Freeman, 1987) $9.95  ISBN 0-
7167-1829-4 pbk.
     This covers only about 65 breeds' temperaments, 
but makes a greater effort to be objective than most 
other sources.
 
Michele Lowell, YOUR PUREBRED PUPPY:  A BUYER'S 
GUIDE (H. Holt and Co., 1991) $10.95 ISBN 0-8050-
1892-1 pbk.
     Far more comprehensive than Hart's book, with 
useful warnings about health defects to watch for in 
specific breeds.  Also contains useful guidelines on 
choosing a breed and finding good breeders.
 
     To help you deal with any new dog, it would be 
hard to find better books than the Monks's book, 
above, and the pellucid and funny
 
Carol Lea Benjamin, MOTHER KNOWS BEST:  THE NATURAL 
WAY TO TRAIN YOUR DOG (Howell Book House, 1985) 
$15.95 hardcover ISBN 0-87605-666-4
 
Carol Lea Benjamin, DOG PROBLEMS (Doubleday and Co., 
1981) $13.95 hardcover ISBN 0-385-15710-X.

II.  Dogs and Home/Neighborhood Security

A.  In Jack MacLean, Secrets of a Superthief (NY:  
Berkley Books, 1983) ISBN 0-425-05645-7, MacLean 
reports the results of a survey of over 300 inmates 
who'd been convicted of burglary and other 
residential crimes.  Three of the questions were 
about dogs and home security:
 
Would dogs scare you away? (p 105)
     65% said that dogs of good size and unfriendly 
persuasion would scare them away
     35% said no dog would scare them away.
Based on reassessment of responses, MacLean believes 
that 90% of the 35% would indeed be scared away; 
that is, MacLean believes that over 95% would indeed 
be scared away.
 
What kinds of dogs scare you away the most? (pp 106
7)
     35%  Dobermans
     30%  "pit bull dogs"
     25%  all dogs
     10%  German Shepherd Dogs
 
What would scare you away from a residence more than 
anything? (pp 1134)
     59%  people in the house
     32%  almost any dog
      9%  replies from nighttime only burglars, 
who'd be deterred by spot or floodlights lighting up 
a yard
 
     MacLean also remarks that creative signs help. 
("Beware of Dog" is too "old hat" to do much good.)
For example:
BEWARE: RABID DOGS INSIDE
Krankheit Rabies Research Foundation
DANGER: Extremely Vicious Barkless German Dobermans
ATTACK DOGS TRAINED AND SOLD HERE.

One police officer wrote to me:
     I do understand the position that you are in:  
you are concerned for your family's safety, and you 
want a nice pet, too. Fortunately when dealing with 
this dilemma, you can have the best of both worlds. 
I speak as a dog enthusiast, and as a police officer 
who specializes in Crime Prevention. So facts... 
Professional criminals dislike:  1. time  2. noise  
3. light.  Most thieves like to be into a house in 
less than 15 seconds; if a criminal needs more than 
that he probably won't break into your house. This 
tells us that good quality, reenforced doors [and 
windows] with heavy duty locks are an answer. LIGHT: 
if you keep the area around your house lighted 
(sensor lights are good and inexpensive too) this 
will help greatly.  NOISE: your little beagle alarm, 
while not intimidating to most people, is a problem 
to a burglar  he does not want to hear that 
barking! So, you can improve your home security 
without adding another dog...BUT, like a lot of 
things, sometimes more is better, and in this case, 
having more physical security, more light or more 
noise is going to be in your favor...Also, having a 
big dog on the property lets the pros know when they 
are looking for an easy mark that perhaps your house 
is not an easy mark.

B.     The responses I got in conversation and 
correspondence added up to about 30 singlespaced 
pages from dozens of people, including breeders, 
owners, trainers and three police officers who 
specialize in crime prevention.  The clear consensus 
was that having some dog is better than having none, 
and that having one of the bigger, louder, darker 
(preferably black) dogs would be helpful to both in
house and neighborhood security, but that because of 
their easily recognized profile and reputation among 
criminals as attackdogs, dobermans [and other 
'guard' dogs; see below] would be significantly more 
of a deterrent than, say, labrador retrievers, 
particularly on neighborhood walks.  It was also 
agreed that one can find dobermans [and other 
'guard' dogs] who'd make very good family pets.  A 
member of the local (Durham, NC) K9 police unit 
reported that his field experience strongly supports 
the claim that black dogs are more of a deterrent.  
He also agreed with MacLean's assessment of 
criminals who say they're not scared by dogs:  
almost all of them are lying.  (The Durham K9 unit 
uses Belgians because they have fewer health 
problems than some other guard dog breeds.)
     One point worth emphasizing is that any dog 
suitable for protection will likely to large (60+ 
lbs.) and smart. Any such dog will need plenty of 
companionship, training and exercise for adequate 
physical and mental stimulation. If the dog does not 
get the proper stimulation, it will become bored, 
tense and anxious (much as would a smart, energetic 
child in a boring classroom); then the dog is likely 
to try to relieve its unpleasant feelings by, e.g., 
running and chewing.  For a large dog, destroying a 
table leg, the whole couch, and/or the drywall 
between adjacent apartments is very easy.

C.     Massad F. Ayoob, The Truth about Self
Defense,1983 (The Police Bookshelf, PO Box 122, 
Concord, NH 03301  18006249049) 417pp. ISBN 0
317644521  $6.95:

WATCHDOGS ...[are] mobile, fourfooted burglar 
alarm[s].  [They] bark insistently and steadily when 
an entry is attempted, and ... [go] to the entry 
point to pinpoint it for you as it yaps.
PROTECTION DOGS are animals with advanced obedience 
training.  On your command, they will bark and lunge 
at an aggressor, snapping at him without actually 
biting him.  Also upon your command, they will 
immediately sit or lie and fall silent. Their 
training is oriented strictly toward a deterrent 
show of force; if your attacker persists, the animal 
will have to fall back on its natural protective 
instinct and bite him.  A properly trained 
protection dog will also perform all the functions 
of a watchdog.
ATTACK DOGS have been trained to sink their teeth 
into people on their master's command, or when they 
observe their master under assault.  Once resistance 
from the suspect ceases, a true attack dog will let 
go of him.  It will do the same on command, no 
matter how excitementcharged the atmosphere, if it 
has been properly trained and selected. Normally, 
the dog will only bite if given the proper command, 
or if the animal sees its owner or a family member 
under attack.  The attack dog is at the maximum 
level of obedience training. After the master has 
ordered it to put a suspect on point, the dog can be 
called back, and even ordered to "make friends."  It 
feels no personal animosity toward the person it is 
ordered to attack; it is a canine technician, doing 
a job on the orders of its human boss.
GUARD DOGS represent the deadliest level of canine 
training.  These animals either walk with a sentry, 
or patrol alone in an enclosed space. Their function 
is to apprehend and neutralize any human intruder. 
They do not stop biting when the suspect stops 
resisting; they stop only when the human stops 
MOVING. They are likely to be trained to go for the 
throat or genitals. Guard dogs are trained to kill 
and maim.  A guard dog is so vicious that it will 
usually obey only a single handler. ... The only 
legitimate use of a guard dog is in wartime, or when 
guarding an area so sensitive that human intrusion 
could result in awesome public danger, such as a 
nuclear weapons facility.

D.     One local trainer/breeder whom I trust 
advised me:
     What I believe you are looking for is the same 
thing I want in a dog  a dog that is:
1) NOT a liability  not aggressive, not attack 
trained....
2) a loving and trustworthy member of your family
3) suspicious of strangers, yet willing to accept 
someone that you say is okay
4) confident enough in its opinions to decide when a 
stranger is a threat, and to back up that threat 
with growling and possibly attacking if necessary.
5) willing to do ANYTHING to protect its beloved 
family.
     This type of dog is produced through a 
combination of breeding and training. Although there 
are exceptions in every breed, the first step would 
be to decide on which of the protection breeds you 
want.  The protection breeds are Rottweilers, 
Doberman Pinschers, German Shepherds [GSDs], 
Belgians (Tervuren, Sheepdogs, Malinois), Bouvier 
des Flandres, Bullmastiffs and recently, Akitas.  
You want a dog that has the bredin instinct to be 
suspicious and alert. You want a dog that is willing 
to be a part of your pack and accept you as pack 
leader. ... most of what you are looking for is 
achieved by BREEDING, not by training.  Picking the 
right dog is ...[the essential first step].  As far 
as training, it is important NOT to use a harsh 
method of training where you destroy all the dog's 
initiative.  You need to use training methods that 
encourage the dog to think and make decisions.  You 
also need to make sure that you are ALWAYS the 
alpha, the "loving dictator."

I replied:
     For inhouse security, a loud, deep (big dog) 
bark from an alert dog MAY be all we need. According 
to the security experts I've read, and the polls of 
criminals they've reported, over 90% of the people 
who might be inclined to break into a home would be 
dissuaded by such a bark. There is good reason to 
want a dog that would not attack a burglar, if one 
did break in:  in the current legal climate, the 
burglar could likely sue me successfully if s/he 
were injured by the dog [see E., below]. I said "MAY 
be all we need," because I would want the dog to 
inflict as much injury as necessary on anyone who 
broke in with the specific intent of harming a 
family member. This seems, objectively, to be an 
unlikely (though awful) possibility, so I am 
reluctant to let it influence the choice of breed 
too heavily. But I need to think about this some 
more, too. For walkingaroundtheneighborhood 
security, a doberman [and other recognizable 'guard' 
dogs] would be more of a deterrent to a potential 
assailant than a lab would  but a black lab would 
be a significant deterrent, too ("Why bother that 
person, with a 'big' black dog, when there are 
others around with little or no dogs?" thinks the 
semirational potential assailant to him/herself. 
And what about the nearpsychotic druguser, who's 
not even semirational? Again, that's an awful 
possibility, but I'm not sure that it's likely 
enough to be allowed heavy influence on choice of 
breed. Then again ...). In my darkest thoughts, I 
think of my 11 year old daughter as the possible 
victim of attack. That does tend to push me toward 
dobermans (or tigers!). I remember walking or 
bicycling to friends' houses when I was her age, and 
feel sad that that freedom may have to be denied to 
her. But what if Dante the dobe were with her ...?

E.     Q:  One other matter that I'd like to know 
more about is what kind of LEGAL TROUBLE a dog owner 
can get into if the dog bites someone (a) who's 
breaking in to the house or (b) who's an assailant 
on the street. I realize that NC state laws are 
directly relevant here, but I'd welcome any general 
remarks you have on the matter.
     A:  Well, there are a whole collection of 
issues here. The first is where canine force falls 
within the useofforce continuum. I have briefly 
examined the issue with the idea of doing an article 
for a police journal, and have to a conclusion with 
which I am comfortable, but I have not yet assembled 
the authority into a coherent enough pile to submit 
for publication (I plan to do it this with a friend 
who is a well known defensive useofforce trainer, 
known most for his teaching of the escalation of use 
of force and development of a useofforcecontinuum 
for the Feds when he taught for them), but I know 
more or less how it will go. Based on the amount of 
damage a large aggressive dog can/will do to a 
human, it is probably correct that canine use force 
should be considered lethal force if it is properly 
analyzed. It is at about the same step as an impact 
weapon, but not as high as a firearm. Fortunately 
for folks like you, most lawyers haven't a clue 
about use of force and won't analyze it correctly if 
they are contacted by someone bitten by your dog. In 
home defense, the law generally gives more latitude 
to the resident, and they will have a harder winning 
a lawsuit. In the street, you may have a slightly 
harder time, depending on the nature of the 
encounter, and how well the bitee perjures himself. 
I think that criminal prosecution would not be 
something to worry about, but that civil litigation 
might result, and that is where the extra investment 
in time and $$ to get a good quality dog is gonna 
pay off. It will really pay if you have lots of 
friends and neighbors who regularly interact with 
the dog and will be able to testify as to its 
peaceful nature, tolerance for the abusiveness of 4 
year old kids, etc. Ayoob's book has many passages 
about the possible civil and criminal consequences 
of use of force, and you should consider them in 
some of your planning. I do. If you have a large 
aggressive dog, you will have to walk it on a SHORT 
lead all the time, just to keep someone like that 
from claiming that the dog was loose and came after 
them at random, without provocation, no matter how 
well trained and tempered the dog is. Face it, if a 
dog of that nature chews on some lowlife, they will 
have some incentive to try to get some $$ out of 
you, and may try, which is why I consider the cost 
of a BEST quality dog to be a minimal investment if 
you are gonna do that route. Their ability to 
collect will also vary with the local legal climate; 
small town/rural areas are not good climates for 
that sort of plaintiff. You also should know in 
advance who the stars of the criminal defense bar in 
the area are, not just in your county, but within 
the state and region. Frankly, if I shoot an 
assailant tonight, one of the things I will do is 
contact Ayoob, because he's not only a well known 
expert witness, but has a file of criminal defense 
lawyers. Useofforce is arcane stuff within the 
criminal bar, and not very many people really do it 
enough to be good at it. What the hell, the old saw 
that "I'd rather be tried by 12 than carried by 6" 
is not exactly incorrect.
     [One lawyer I know feels that the preceding 
exaggerates the likely legal trouble.]

IV.     Buying a Puppy

     For general advice, see Lowell's book, cited in 
section I, above.  A larger pet (as distinguished 
from show) quality dog from a good breeder will 
cost upwards of $500.  However, by investing more up 
front, one can save a great deal (i.e., thousands) 
on later vet bills.  Some breeders will provide 
written guarantees; e.g., one proud, happy owner 
wrote:  

I bought my dog from a breeder as a pet and he has 
grown into a beautiful show dog.  With him came the 
following:  1)  Guarantee that he would be free from 
genetic disorders or I would be given a new puppy; 
or if I chose to keep him, I would be given back the 
money I paid for him and extra money to help with 
vet bills.  2)  His pedigree, and any information on 
his parents that I wanted.  3)  His AKC papers.  4)  
All shots and wormings.  5)  [Breed specific 
cosmetic surgery, if requested]  6)  A well behaved 
and healthy companion with perfect temperament.  7)  
No worries whatsoever.   To me, all that was worth 
spending the extra money to go to a breeder.

     All breeds are subject to geneticallylinked 
defects in health and temperament.  Working with a 
good breeder minimizes the chance that one will end 
up with a defective dog.  Lowell's book has some 
good advice and information about this, too.  If you 
want to do further research, consult

Roy Robinson, Genetics for Dog Breeders, 1990
Annette M. Carricato, Veterinary Notes for Dog 
Breeders, 1992.

For even more detail, see:

Ross D. Clark and Joan R. Steiner, Medical and 
Genetic Aspects
of Purebred Dogs, 1983 [encyclopaedic]
Malcolm Willis, Genetics of the Dog, 1989 [a large 
veterinary text].