Training police dogs is a serious business, and these dogs have to be prepared to handle a variety of dangerous situations. Our selection of K9 training equipment and K9 nosework kits can be helpful training tools, but, of course, you can also use these products for your non-police pooch. Here are a few fun facts about police dogs, as well as a quick look at our selection of K9 training equipment.
Dogs have been working in law enforcement in the United States for more than a century. The first K9 unit was organized in 1907 in New York City and German shepherds were the first breed used for police work. Today, many breeds can be trained to be police dogs, and while the German shepherd is still the most popular option, you will find Dutch shepherds, Belgian Malinois and sometimes Rottweilers or Doberman pinchers. For search and rescue work, dogs such as bloodhounds often are used and Labrador retrievers are excellent dogs for detecting explosives and narcotics.
It also might interest you to know that the purchase, training and care expenses for police dogs typically are not paid for by the police department. Most police departments do not have a portion of their budgets set aside for canine units. Instead, these expenses are covered by charitable foundations. So, when you support your local police organization, part of that contribution probably helps support your local police dogs.
It takes several months to train a police dog, and their police officer handlers also typically keep up with training throughout the dog’s service. In addition to learning a myriad of commands, police dogs are trained using special K9 training equipment; many of these pieces of equipment are quite similar to dog agility equipment. At Carlson Agility, we produce high-quality K9 training equipment, including the following items.
Contact K9 Training Equipment
Police dogs have to be able to navigate some narrow spaces, as well as some high spaces. Our K9 training equipment includes many items that address these skills. For instance, we have several different K9 dog walks, as well as catwalks at several different heights, depending on what you need. Our K9 adjustable teeter makes it easy for trainers to work with their dogs, improving their balance and stability.
We also carry A-frames in 6, 8 and 9-foot heights, as well as a unique catch A-frame that includes one side that features a small platform and a ramp that’s a bit of a mix between a dog walk and an A-frame. Our Platform Climb is another excellent piece of K9 training equipment as it includes 6-foot-high platform surrounding by three different climbs – an open-stair ladder, a closed-stair ladder and a ramp with slats. This allows you to teach your dog how to ascend and descend in many different situations.
Tunnels & Crawls
When searching for suspects or specific items, a police dog may have to crawl through or under something to reach what they seek. Our selection of tunnels and crawls prepares them to handle these tasks. Our dog crawl is 8 feet in length and just 16 inches high, providing dogs with a good facsimile of what they might expect crawling under a house or under fallen debris. We also have several different sizes of tunnels and a K9 platform trainer, a versatile piece of equipment that includes a tunnel ramp and platforms at two different heights.
K9 Jumps & Hurdles
While police dog training has a serious purpose, the dogs still have a blast learning how to use the K9 training equipment, especially our selection of jumps. We have tire jumps and broad jumps similar to those you might use on an agility course, but we also have some unique pieces. For instance, we sell a window hurdle, a wall hurdle, a picket fence hurdle and a brick wall hurdle to prepare police dogs for the many types of obstacles they might encounter. We also offer a chain link hurdle and a car door jump.
K9 Nosework Equipment
While a dog’s nose can be helpful tool for many police-related tasks, K9 nosework is becoming increasingly popular as a canine sport. We have a set of three nosework canisters as well as a larger nosework set which can be used for scent, alert or detection training as well as preparing for some fun nosework competitions.
All of our K9 training can be used by professionals training police dogs, but it also certainly can be used to expand your own home agility course or to expand the offerings available at your local agility club.
Brad Carlson enjoys dog agility training. To find K9 training equipment or to find more about training equipment for K9 training, please check out the Carlson-Agility.com website, or if you have any questions, send us an email today.
