# Training the Building Search



## Mike Schoonbrood (Mar 27, 2006)

How do you train the building search?

The way I have seen it done that I like best is to work backwards. First you start in the building in a room with open door and visible decoy and let the dog bite. Then close the door, repeat. Then move down the hall. Then around the corner, going backwards each step until you can do it from outside the building. Effectively showing the dog what he will find in the building. Then start to switch rooms and teach the dog the decoy isn't always in the same place and build from there.

I have seen some police trainers that go the opposite direction, they start outside the building and see what the dog does naturally, then guide the dog with some handler direction to where he will find the bad guy. Kind of a doggy trial & error method.


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## David Frost (Mar 29, 2006)

I generally start from outside, having a dog chase the decoy into the building. chase to the door way; chase into the building; chase into 1st room (door open); chase into 1st room door mostly closed, letting dog push door open; chase into 1st room door closed; rinse and repeat. I continue this using doors in succession, then random. Similar to using a scent board. I don't start building search until the dog has already started in area search. I just build from there.

DFrost


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## Howard Gaines III (Dec 26, 2007)

We do it outside the building or shed and then go inside. As the dog is at ease with the interior, "stuff" is placed in the way to help the dog work through issues and environmental areas. Bites are always slip and wins.


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## Kadi Thingvall (Jan 22, 2007)

Boy, it depends on the dog, where I am, and the mood I'm in that day LOL I've done the "let them see the decoy run into the building, the release them 60 seconds later to see what happens" with some dogs. But they were dogs I already knew were natural searchers just from other training we'd done. With dogs that are more "out of sight out of mind" I break it down similar to what David described. But I also raise my dogs with lots of search games, so it just seems to come naturally to them. The biggest "leap" I see is the transition from having them see the decoy go into the building, and just taking them to a building "cold" and telling them to search. And even them with most of them some verbal "oh man, where is, is there a bad guy in there, gonna find him, gonna find him, gonna find him" LOL is enough to get them ready to go.


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## Patrick Murray (Mar 27, 2006)

I'd like to train my pup to search our home for intruders. I'm inclined to teach her a bark-and-hold as I don't want her to one day go in and bite a visiting relative, etc. When she's ready (she's only 5 months now) do you think I should teach a bark-and-hold and then teach it in unison with a building search?


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## Eros Kopliku (Jan 30, 2008)

Patrick,

Have you considered that Bark and Hold may get your dog killed if an intruder is in your house?


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## Patrick Murray (Mar 27, 2006)

Yes, in fact, I have. The thought is that the dog would "alert" us and then do a bark and hold. My concern about teaching our dog to attack is that it's far more likely that our dog could attack a guest. 

Has anyone trained their PPD to actually search their home? How about you Eros?


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## Eros Kopliku (Jan 30, 2008)

Not yet, but I would like to in the future as my dog matures, which is why I found this thread of interest. The way I look at it: No one will ever be in my house without me knowing. If someone happens to be in my house without my permission and ignores all verbal commands to come out, then the creep deserves to get bit so I am not worried about the dog biting an innocent. 

However, if I have strong reason to believe that someone is in my house, I would call the police before even thinking to use the dog.


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## Phil Dodson (Apr 4, 2006)

> before starting any search training I ensure the dog responds to the bark command. When first starting the search I have the dog run to a partially open door, niff and then bark prior to entering for his reward and so on until he is searching doors and barking on his own. Then we start traditional search work in buildings.

> Phil


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## Simon Mellick (Oct 31, 2006)

Patrick Murray said:


> I'd like to train my pup to search our home for intruders. I'm inclined to teach her a bark-and-hold as I don't want her to one day go in and bite a visiting relative, etc. When she's ready (she's only 5 months now) do you think I should teach a bark-and-hold and then teach it in unison with a building search?


Barking is only half of the bark and hold. The other half is biting when the person cues the dog that he is allowed. If, for safety concerns, all you want to teach is a bark, that's fine. But don't think that even family members are going to stand totally still like in a schutzhund trial. If you train a true bark and hold, you can probably still expect the person to get nailed. Which, for me, is why it's not worth the extra danger to the dog to train the B&H.


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## Patrick Murray (Mar 27, 2006)

Well, I don't know anything about a B&H but what you say makes sense. I'm just going to train her to search each room and to bite the shinola out of anything that moves.


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