From: David F. Austin <David_Austin@ncsu.edu>
Subject: Dogs and Personal Security (WAS: Re: Getting a dog (A sad story))
Organization: NCSU
X-Useragent: Nuntius v1.1
     <1993Jan8.032352.24031@pony.Ingres.COM> <1ijs5eINN2vc@usenet.INS.CWRU.Edu>
Date: Mon, 11 Jan 1993 17:08:13 GMT

In article <1ife6dINN2sq@overload.lbl.gov> elizabeth finlayson,
eufnlasn@ux1.lbl.gov writes:
(stuff deleted)
>If anyone has any ***constructive*** advice on how they should proceed
>in getting a new dog, or dogs they're thinking about getting another
>bassett hound too, please let me know.
>
>Thanks
>
>Elizabeth
>eufinlayson@lbl.gov

The following may be useful or of interest to readers of this thread.

DRAFT 1.0 Comments welcome (All notes at end)

Dogs and Home/Neighborhood Security:
An Introductory Guide

(-for those who'd welcome a dog as a family member)
prepared by David Austin (mainly as an exercise in self-education)
November 1992

DISCLAIMER:  Although I have consulted with experts and have 
tried to be a good reporter, I am not a breeder, trainer, veterinarian 
or any other kind of expert on dogs or security.

	The crime rates are up, and you're afraid at home and around 
the neighborhood.*  How would you like to increase your safety 
with the help of a companion who has superhuman abilities, cares 
selflessly about your welfare, and will adore you even when others 
reject you?  With some effort, you can find such companions - 
they're dogs.  This guide can help you make the right kind of effort.

I. General Information on Choosing a Dog

Before considering what kind of dog to get, I'd recommend reading: 
The Monks of New Skete, The Art of Raising a Puppy.1  To choose 
breeds, consult:  Benjamin and Lynette Hart, The Perfect Puppy and 
Michele Lowell, Your Purebred Puppy.  The Perfect Puppy covers 
only 56 of the most popular breeds' temperaments, but makes a 
greater effort to be objective than most other sources.  It's most 
important to know about the categories of temperament that the 
Harts define. Your Purebred Puppy covers almost three times as 
many breeds and includes:  warnings about health defects to watch 
for in specific breeds; guidelines on choosing a breed to fit your way 
of living; and advice on finding good breeders.2
	Of course, reading books is no substitute for meeting dogs, 
owners and breeders.3  Each dog is an individual who may not have 
the temperament typical of his/her breed; individual differences can 
even swamp breed differences.  But you still improve your odds of 
getting a companionable dog if you know what's typical of a 
breed.4

II.  Dogs and Home/Neighborhood Security

A.  Ask the experts.  Jack MacLean (Secrets of a Superthief) reports 
the results of a survey of over 300 prison inmates who'd been 
convicted of burglary or other residential crimes.  Three of the 
questions were about dogs and home security:
 
Would dogs scare you away?
	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 concludes that over 
95% would indeed be scared away.5
 
What kinds of dogs scare you away the most?
	35%  Dobermans
	30%  "pit bull dogs"6
	25%  all dogs
	10%  German Shepherd Dogs
 
What would scare you away from a residence more than anything?
	59%  people in the house
	32%  almost any dog7
 	9%  replies from night-time only burglars, who'd be 
				deterred by spot or flood lights 
lighting up a yard
 
	A police officer wrote:

...you are concerned for your family's safety, and you want a nice 
pet, too.  Fortunately ..., 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.  [TIME:] 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 qual-
ity, re-enforced 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: ... [a small, alert dog], 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 
a... [larger] 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.  Another expert on personal security, and four roles for dogs.  In 
The Truth about Self-Defense, nationally-recognized expert on 
security and use-of-force Massad F. Ayoob writes:

WATCHDOGS ...[are] mobile, four-footed 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 ... [they] yap.
PROTECTION DOGS are animals with advanced obedience train-
ing.  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 
excitement-charged 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 en-
closed space.  Their function is to apprehend and neutralize any hu-
man intruder.  They do not stop biting when the suspect stops re-
sisting; 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.

Ayoob argues that very few people need more than a protection dog.  
I assume that he's right.

C.  A consensus on dogs and personal security.  Among the dozens 
of people consulted (breeders, owners, trainers and three police 
officers who specialize in crime prevention), the clear consensus 
was:

having some dog is better than having none, and having one of the 
larger, louder, darker (preferably black8) dogs would be helpful 
with both in-house and neighborhood security, but because of their 
easily recognized physical appearance and reputation among crimi-
nals as attack-dogs, Dobermans (and some other protection dogs; 
see D.) would be much more of a deterrent than, say, Labrador Re-
trievers, particularly on neighborhood walks.  It was also agreed 
that one can find Dobermans (and other protection dogs) who'd 
make wonderful family pets.

D.  Profile of a protective family dog.  A trainer/breeder advises:

... you are looking for the same thing I want ... - 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 whom you 
say is okay
4) confident enough in his/her opinions to decide when a stranger is 
a threat, and to back up that threat with growling and possibly at-
tacking if necessary.
5) willing to do anything to protect his/her 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 Belgians (Tervuren, 
Sheepdogs, Malinois), Bouvier des Flandres, Bullmastiffs, 
Doberman Pinschers, German Shepherd Dogs, Rottweilers, and 
recently, Akitas.  You want a dog that has the bred-in 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 [pack leader], the "loving 
dictator."

For in-house security, a loud, deep (big dog) bark from an alert 
watchdog may be all you need.  I say "may" because you might 
want the dog to stop anyone who tried to harm a family member - 
that is, you might feel the need for a protection dog.  What kind of 
dog you feel you need for in-house security will depend on how 
awful the harm would feel, weighted by how likely it seems.  For 
walking-around-the-neighborhood security, a Doberman (and other 
recognizable protection dogs) would be more of a deterrent than, 
say, a Labrador Retriever - but a black Lab would be a deterrent, 
too:  "Why bother that person, with a 'big' black dog, when there 
are others around with little or no dogs?" thinks the semi-rational 
potential assailant.  And what about the near-psychotic drug-user, 
who's not even semi-rational? Again, the awfulness of this 
possibility must be weighted by its likelihood.  When we think of 
our children, even unlikely harm looms large.
	Any dog suitable for protection will likely be larger (22+" at 
the shoulder, 55+ lbs.), smart and powerful.  Such a dog will need 
plenty of exercise, training and companionship.  Otherwise, the dog 
will become tense and anxious (much as would a bright, energetic 
child deprived of companions or play), and will try to relieve these 
feelings by, e.g., running, chewing or barking.  For a larger dog, 
destroying a table leg, the entire couch or the drywall between 
apartments (actual incidents!) is very easy.  This applies not only to 
the protection breeds, but to any dog who's larger, smart and 
powerful, even a typically calm Labrador Retriever.  Any dog will 
benefit from ready access via dog-door to a securely fenced yard 
also containing a kennel run.
	Would a 24", 60lb. dog take up too much space?  Well, 
there's the number of cubic feet that the dog occupies, and there's 
'personal-space' (a measure of how intrusive it feels to have the dog 
indoors).  A well-trained Doberman takes up less personal-space 
than a boisterous (13", 15lb.) Beagle.  

E.  Legal issues:  Suppose that your dog bites someone (a) who's 
breaking into the house or (b) who's an assailant on the street.  
What legal trouble might you face?  State and local laws are relevant 
here, but here are some general remarks from a police 
officer/lawyer.

The first issue is where canine force falls within the use-of-force 
continuum. .... Based on the amount of damage a large, aggressive 
dog can/will do to a human, it is probably correct that canine use of 
force should be considered lethal force ... at about the same step as 
an impact weapon, but not as high as a firearm.  Fortunately for 
[most] folks ..., 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 ... [the bitee] will have a harder time winning a 
lawsuit.  In the street, you may have a slightly harder time, depend-
ing 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 $$ to get a good quality dog is 
gonna pay off.  It will really pay if you have lots of friends and 
neighbors who regularly interact with the dog and will be able to 
testify as to its peaceful nature, tolerance for the abusiveness of 4 
year old kids, etc. Ayoob's book has many passages about the pos-
sible civil and criminal consequences of use of force, and you 
should consider them in some of your planning. ... If you have a 
large, aggressive dog, you will have to walk it on a short lead all the 
time, just to keep someone ... from claiming that the dog was loose 
and came after them at random, without provocation, no matter how 
well trained and tempered the dog is. ... [I]f a dog of that nature 
chews on some lowlife, [s/he] ... will have some incentive to try to 
get some $$ out of you, and may try, which is why I consider the 
cost of a best quality dog to be a minimal investment....  The 
[bitee's] ability to collect will also vary with the local legal climate; 
small town/rural areas are not good climates for that sort of plaintiff.

Another lawyer believes that the preceding overstates the likely legal 
trouble.
	Check your homeowner's or renter's insurance policy.  
Some companies may restrict coverage if you have certain breeds of 
dogs at home.
 
III.	Buying a Puppy

For general advice, consult Your Purebred Puppy.  A larger-breed, 
pet-quality puppy will cost upwards of $400.9  However, by 
investing more up front, one can save a great deal in the long run 
(thousands on later vet bills; or worse, if you don't have thousands 
to spare, the agony of having a cherished pet put to death).  Some 
breeders will provide written guarantees; one proud, happy owner 
writes:  

Now I have a Doberman Pinscher.  I bought him 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)  Tail docked, ears cropped and free ear care.  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 genetically-linked defects in health 
and temperament.  Working with a good breeder minimizes (but, of 
course, does not eliminate) the chance that one will end up with a 
defective dog.  Your Purebred Puppy has some good advice about 
this.10
	Don't be scared by talk of genetic defects and health 
problems.  Although some breeds have been severely damaged by 
poor breeding, the best response to a long list of possible defects 
and problems is to be alert for them at the outset.  Also, keep in 
mind that the length of a list may reflect the state of knowledge about 
a breed more than the likelihood of running into problems.  
Uncommon breeds are generally less well studied than more 
common breeds, and so may have shorter lists.  Popular breeds will 
generally have longer lists in part because they've been studied more 
intensively.11

IV.	Before You Bring Your Puppy Home

To help you raise your dog, consult The Art of Raising a Puppy; 
Carol Lea Benjamin, Mother Knows Best  and Dog Problems; 
Clarice Rutherford and David Neil, How to Raise a Puppy You Can 
Live With; or William Campbell, Owner's Guide to Better Behavior 
in Dogs and Cats.12  If you study just one of these before you get 
your puppy, it should probably be How to Raise a Puppy You Can 
Live With  (-but if you don't have time for more, do you really have 
time for a dog?).  To help you decide when to call the vet, buy and 
use Carlson and Giffin, Dog Owner's Home Veterinary Handbook.  
This is far more 'user-friendly' than the cheaper Merck Veterinary 
Manual, also often stocked in mall bookstores.
	Of course, no one can learn how to raise a dog from books 
alone.13  Plan to enroll with your puppy in a training class by the 
time the puppy is six months old.  (Trainers and kennel clubs offer 
these regularly; they typically meet weekly for 6-10 weeks and cost 
about $50-$100 total.  Private lessons cost more, but even one or 
two can be very helpful with tougher problems.)  It also helps to 
view some of the many videos available.  One good one is:  Dr. Ian 
Dunbar's Sirius Puppy Training Program; the manual is Dunbar's 
How to Teach a New Dog Old Tricks.
	Pet supply stores (e.g., Pet Depot) stock the equipment 
you'll need (crate, collar, leash, bowls, etc.), but their prices are 
higher than those of mail-order suppliers.  One of the fastest and 
most reliable mail-order suppliers is R. C. Steele Co. (see 
References and Sources).

V.	Dobermans

A. Why?  If you want a readily-trainable, medium-sized, short-
haired dog who doesn't drool a lot, who'd make a great family pet 
and who'd also deter criminals by her appearance alone, then a black 
female Doberman is the kind of dog to get.

B.  Avoiding health problems:  Janet L. Fisher, DVM, Director of 
the Biological Defects/Medical Registry, Doberman Pinscher Club 
of America (DPCA), advises:

Buy a puppy whose parents are Von Willebrand's Disease- 
(VWD)14 and thyroid-normal.  You need to check the family back-
ground for cervical vertebral instability ("Wobbler Syndrome"), car-
diomyopathy and hypothyroidism; there are no tests for them as they 
don't show up until later in life.  The puppy should also be tested 
for VWD.15

	The DPCA has a Genetic Health Certificate (GHC) program 
that awards dogs additional titles for genetic health.  The dog must 
have passing scores in all components of the program to earn a 
GHC title:  hips (OFA:  Orthopaedic Foundation for Animals), 
VWD, and eyes (CERF:  Canine Eye Registration Foundation).  
There is also a GHC-T title which adds thyroid testing.  What's 
most important is following Dr. Fisher's advice.16
	Some breed 'giant' Dobermans (over 28").  These dogs are 
more susceptible to bone problems like hip dysplasia than normal 
Dobermans, and so are best avoided.  It's doubtful that the extra size 
yields significantly more protection for the owner.

VI.	A Long-Haired Alternative:  Belgians

If you don't mind the copious shedding of a long-haired dog, then a 
Belgian would be a good choice.  The Sheepdogs are black; the 
Tervuren can have a mixture of dark and light (rich fawn to russet 
mahogany with black overlay); the Malinois resemble German 
Shepherd Dogs in their overall coloring (fawn to mahogany) and 
coat-length.  Since they are as yet less popular than many of the 
other protection breeds, they've not been overbred and are generally 
very healthy.17  Nevertheless, to guard against hip dysplasia, check 
OFA certification in the dog's pedigree.

VII.	Second Hand Dogs

Wonderful dogs can be found at animal shelters, but the risk of 
getting one with health and temperament problems is much higher, 
since information about the dogs is typically very limited.  (The risk 
can be reduced somewhat by hiring an experienced trainer to help 
choose the dog and having a vet check the dog before adopting it.) 
Your Purebred Puppy and The Perfect Puppy offer some good 
advice.  The Art of Raising a Puppy and Owner's Guide to Better 
Behavior in Dogs and Cats contain detailed sections on puppy 
temperament testing.  Simpler versions of the tests are described in 
Carol Lea Benjamin's Second Hand Dog and Chosen Puppy.
	Many breeds have active rescue organizations, another good 
source of 'second hand' dogs.   Breeders and kennel clubs often 
know whom to contact.  And there's a directory of rescue 
organizations:  Network for Ani-males and Females, Project Breed 
Directory.

VIII.	Neutering, Health and Temperament

The connections among neutering, behavior and rate of maturation 
are not clear, although neutering of male dogs does seem to reduce 
roaming, fighting, mounting and marking that are specifically sex-
driven.18  There is, however, one very powerful health argument 
for early spaying of female dogs.  Of the diseases to which they are 
subject, mammary cancer is the biggest killer of females.   Spaying 
before the first heat reduces the risk of mammary cancer by 99%; 
spaying between the first and second heat reduces the risk by about 
90%; spaying between second and third heat reduces the risk by 
about 80%; but spaying after the third heat does not significantly re-
duce the risk.

References and Sources

Many of these books are available in public libraries and/or chain 
('mall') bookstores.  Almost any dog book or tape can be ordered 
from Direct Book Service:  Dog and Cat Book Catalog (1700 
titles!), PO Box 15357, Seattle, WA 98115, 1-800-776-2665.

American Kennel Club, The Complete Dog Book 18th Ed. (Howell 
House, 1992) ISBN 0-87605-464-5
Massad F. Ayoob, The Truth about Self-Defense (1983, The Police 
Bookshelf, PO Box 122, Concord, NH 03301  1-800-624-9049) 
$6.95 pbk ISBN 0-317-64452-1
Carol Lea Benjamin, Chosen Puppy:  How to Select and Raise a 
Great Puppy from an Animal Shelter (Howell Book House, 1990) 
$7.95 pbk ISBN 0-87605-417-3
Carol Lea Benjamin, Dog Problems (Doubleday and Co., 1981) 
$13.95 hardcover ISBN 0-385-15710-X
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, Second Hand Dog:  How to Turn Yours into a 
First Rate Pet  (Howell Book House, 1988) $6.00 pbk  ISBN 0-
87605-735-0
William E. Campbell, Behavior Problems in Dogs 2nd ed. (Goleta, 
CA:  American Veterinary Pubs., 1992) $32.95 hardcover ISBN 0-
939674-36-X
William E. Campbell, Owner's Guide to Better Behavior in Dogs 
and Cats (Loveland, CO:  Alpine Publications, 1989) $14.95 pbk 0-
931866-42-D
Delbert G. Carlson, DVM and James M. Giffin, MD, Dog Owner's 
Home Veterinary Handbook (Revised and Expanded) (Howell Book 
House, 1992) $25.00 hardcover ISBN 0-87605-537-4
Annette M. Carricato, Veterinary Notes for Dog Breeders, (Howell 
Book House, 1992)  ISBN 0876058055.
Ross D. Clark and Joan R. Steiner, Medical and Genetic Aspects of 
Purebred Dogs, (Edwardsville, Kansas:  Veterinary Medical Pubs., 
1983) ISBN 093507824X
Dr. Ian Dunbar's Sirius Puppy Training Program (Pacific Arts 
Video, 1-800-538-5856, 50 N. La Cienega Blvd., Beverly Hills, 
CA 90211)  $14.95
Ian Dunbar, How to Teach a New Dog Old Tricks (Sirius Puppy 
Training Program Manual) (Oakland, CA:  James and Kenneth 
Pubs., 1991)  $17.95 spiral bound
Benjamin Hart, DVM, PhD and Lynette A. Hart, PhD, The Perfect 
Puppy (WH Freeman, 1987) $9.95 pbk ISBN 0-7167-1829-4
Vicki Hearne, Bandit:  Dossier of a Dangerous Dog (Harper, 1991) 
$11.00 pbk ISBN 0-06-019005-1
James Herriot, Dog Stories (St. Martin's Press, 1986) $5.99 pbk 
ISBN 0-312-92558-1
R. M. Koster, Carmichael's Dog (Norton, 1992) ISBN 
0393033910
Michele Lowell, Your Purebred Puppy:  A Buyer's Guide (H. Holt 
and Co., 1991) $10.95 pbk ISBN 0-8050-1892-1
Jack MacLean, Secrets of a Superthief (NY:  Berkley Books, 1983) 
ISBN 0-425-05645-7
Donald McCaig, Eminent Dogs, Dangerous Men:  Seeking through 
Scotland for a Border Collie (Harper, 1991) $10.00 pbk ISBN 0-
06-098114-8
Monks of New Skete, The Art of Raising a Puppy (Little Brown, 
1991) $17.95 hardcover ISBN 0-316-57839-8
Network for Ani-males and Females, Project Breed Directory 
(Germantown, MD, 1989) $18.95 pbk ISBN 0938073028
Roy Robinson, Genetics for Dog Breeders (Pergamon Press, 1990) 
ISBN 0080374921
Clarice Rutherford and David H. Neil, How to Raise a Puppy You 
Can Live With  2nd Ed. (Loveland, CO:  Alpine Publications, 1992) 
$9.95 pbk ISBN 0-931866-57-X
Larry Shook, The Puppy Report (NY: Lyons and Burford Pubs., 
1992) ISBN 1-55821-140-3
Bonnie Wilcox, DVM and Chris Walkowicz, The Atlas of Dog 
Breeds of the World (Neptune City, NJ: T.F.H. Pubs., 1989) 
ISBN 0-86622-930-2
Malcolm Willis, Genetics of the Dog (Howell Book House, 1989) 
ISBN 087605551X

For Supplies:
R. C. Steele Co., 1989 Transit Way Box 910, Brockport, NY 
14420-0910; for catalogue requests:  1-800-872-4506; for credit 
card orders:  1-800-872-3773.  (There is a $50 minimum on each 
order.)

NOTES:
*and, most recently, in the car.  A November 15, 1992 LA Times 
article reports security expert Richard W. Kobetz's view that 
criminals will try new tactics as home security improves, and that 
car-jackings will likely increase.
1See References and Sources for more detailed information on 
books and tapes.
2For color photographs, see: AKC, The Complete Dog Book; and 
Wilcox and Walkowicz, The Atlas of Dog Breeds of the World.
3A great place to meet all three together is at dog shows.  Check the 
monthly Dog World, available at many libraries and newsstands, for 
extensive listings.  Local kennel clubs can also help.
4Life with a dog is also well described in fiction.  One recent novel, 
R. M. Koster, Carmichael's Dog, is a profoundly witty account of 
how a dog's purity of heart may be enlisted in the fight against even 
the most tenacious personal demons.  Some excellent contemporary 
nonfiction narratives are: James Herriot, Dog Stories; Vicki Hearne, 
Bandit:  Dossier of a Dangerous Dog (an artfully written and 
sophisticated consideration of the question, Do dogs have minds?); 
and Donald McCaig, Eminent Dogs, Dangerous Men (on the 
importance of giving dogs some work to do).  You can find many 
other dog tales, fictional and factual, in public libraries.
5A police officer in a K9 unit agreed with MacLean's assessment of 
criminals who say they're not scared by dogs:  almost all of them are 
lying.
6This is not the name of a breed.  The term refers to dogs of various 
breeds:  American Pit Bull Terrier, American Bulldog, Dogo 
Argentino, American Staffordshire Terrier, Staffordshire Bull 
Terrier and perhaps Bull Terrier, as well as dogs resembling these.  
See Bandit for a discussion of why this isn't merely a matter of 
semantics.
7MacLean says that creative signs also help. (Beware of Dog is too 
'old hat'.)  For example:  BEWARE: RABIES Quarantine Area; 
Krankheit Rabies Research Foundation; DANGER: Extremely 
Vicious Barkless German DOBERMANS; ATTACK DOGS 
TRAINED AND SOLD HERE; our Great Dane welcomes you for a 
meal.
8The K9 unit officer reported that his field experience strongly 
supports the claim that black dogs are more of a deterrent.
9The price for such a pet-quality puppy is just about the cost of 
breeding and raising a puppy properly until it's ready for adoption at 
7-12 weeks.  Very few breeders break even.  So there's reason to be 
suspicious if a dog of larger breed is offered for less.
10For additional cautionary tales, see:  Larry Shook, The Puppy 
Report.  Shook reminds us that a guarantee, oral or written, is only 
as good as the guarantor.  For additional information, consult:  Roy 
Robinson, Genetics for Dog Breeders, or Annette M. Carricato, 
Veterinary Notes for Dog Breeders.  For even more detail, see:  
Ross D. Clark and Joan R. Steiner, Medical and Genetic Aspects of 
Purebred Dogs, (encyclopaedic, out of date, but still useful) and 
Malcolm Willis, Genetics of the Dog, (a veterinary text that pre-
supposes some knowledge of genetics).
11One dramatic example is Clark and Steiner's chapter on Beagles, 
which gives one of the longest lists in their book.  But this is due in 
large part to the popularity of Beagles as lab animals.
12The latter is based on the standard text, Campbell's Behavior 
Problems in Dogs.  Both books explain how many 'dog' problems 
really result from unreasonable owner expectations and behavior.
13If you consult several books and/or tapes, you'll discover that 
there is disagreement about dog training methods.  But much the 
same is true for books on child-raising, another very complex 
subject, which has been far more extensively studied.  There does 
seem to be universal agreement that for dogs as well as for children, 
preventing behavior problems is best achieved through rewards for 
desired behavior, rather than punishment for undesired behavior.  
Of course, different dog/owner teams may require different sorts of 
methods, just as different parent/child 'teams' may need different 
approaches towards child-raising.
14Some information on VWD from Leah Cohn, DVM, PhD, 
College of Veterinary Medicine, NCSU:  There are three types of 
VWD, only one as severe as human haemophilia.  Dobermans have 
the mildest of the three types:  an afflicted dog will have increased 
clotting times if cut (e.g., during surgery), but bleeding incidents 
respond very well to transfusion and drugs.  Generally, the 
Dobermans who are carriers only won't bleed excessively, and the 
affected dogs will bleed, but not much.  [If a VWD dog is taking 
aspirin (say, for orthopaedic problems), then this can make the 
clotting problem worse.]  Hypothyroidism can cause the VWD fac-
tor to decrease, too, but this is remedied by thyroid hormone 
replacement therapy.  There are three tests for VWD; most samples 
are sent to Jean Dodds, DVM, in NY. The tests are not all that 
reliable.  For example, if less than 40% of the normal amount of the 
VW factor is present, the dog is called affected, with  40%-70%, the 
dog is called a carrier, more than 70%, the dog is said to be clear.  
(These are very rough figures.) But dogs classified as carriers in this 
way can bleed more than dogs classified as affected - there are other 
factors that will determine the severity of symptoms.
15Dr. Cohn also offered this additional information about doberman 
health problems:  The choice of a black female is a good one since 
blacks (and reds) have less skin disease, and females have much 
less cardiomyopathy.  Dobermans (and to an even greater extent, 
Rottweilers) may not respond as well as other breeds to parvovirus 
vaccine, so it's a good idea to give them extra vaccinations later, 
e.g., again at 6 months.  Far less frequent doberman health 
problems:
	-congenital renal disease (similar to glomuleronephritis), 
apparent by 16 weeks, rare
	-osteosarcoma (far more common in giant breeds, e.g. Great 
Danes), a disease of middle age, first apparent as a lump toward 
elbow or away from knee producing lameness; by the time the lump 
is seen, the cancer has already spread and it's too late to do much 
about it
	-copper storage disease of liver, beginning in puppyhood 
(quite common in Bedlington terriers), affects older females more 
severely
	-tribrissin arthropathies:  an inflammatory response to a very 
common antibiotic, which, however, stops soon after the medication 
is withdrawn; there are other, even better (though more expensive) 
antibiotics to use instead 
	-ciliary dyskinesia in nose and throat, seen as runny nose in 
young puppy
16Some Dobermans will lick a spot on their flanks repeatedly 
('flank-sucking'), causing a multiple lick granuloma.  The psy-
choactive medications that help human beings trapped in obsessive-
compulsive behavior may also help dogs.  Some veterinary 
dermatologists contend that the licking is the dog's response to a 
deep skin infection (pyoderma) and that anti-staph antibiotics are 
therefore at least as effective as the psychoactive medications.
17The K9 unit mentioned above uses Belgian Malinois (and the 
similar but rarer Dutch Shepherds) because they have fewer health 
problems than German Shepherd Dogs and some other protection 
dog breeds.
18One of the few systematic studies of this very complex subject 
was done by leading animal behaviorist Dr. Benjamin L. Hart.  
Hart's study found that 
... castration doesn't affect hunting ability or watchdog behavior. 
There are individual differences in how it affects other behaviors.  
Some differences are probably a result of the environment but many 
are due to breed and genetics.  Roaming showed the greatest degree 
of change with over 90 percent of the dogs having either a rapid or 
gradual decline.  This is probably a result of the lessening in sexual 
drive.  Fighting with other male dogs showed 40 percent to have a 
rapid decline and 22 percent a gradual decline. About 50 percent 
showed a decline in urine marking in the house. The act of mounting 
dropped rapidly in about one-third of the dogs studied and gradually 
declined in another one-third.  Much of this decline was in mounting 
people so castration appears to be a good way to reduce this 
problem.
	There doesn't appear to be a proven difference in effect from 
castration before puberty or in the adult dog.  In fact, some humane 
shelters and breeders are neutering their pups by four months of age 
before they are placed in their new homes.  Recent studies have 
shown no ill effects.  And as is true with the female spay operation, 
there is no basis for the idea that castrated dogs become fat and lazy.  
(Rutherford and Neil, 155-6)
Experienced breeders and trainers often offer anecdotal evidence that 
spaying before a female's first heat will cause her to retain, perhaps 
permanently, her puppy personality.  See, for example, DK Bates 
and M Miller, "Does early spaying cause bad behavior?," letter to 
Dog World, December 1992, p. 4.  (In this letter, "early" seems to 
mean "before the first heat.")
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