Work Dogs Strut Their Stuff in Rochester

Sitz! Fuss! Fass! When members of the SouthCoast Working Dog Club tell their dogs to sit, heel, and attack, they don’t have to tell them twice.

The club, based out of Rochester, holds a number of Schutzhund Trial and Conformation Shows at the Rochester Country Fairgrounds every year, and the Spring Trial and competition took place this past weekend on May 27-29.

Schutzhund means “protection dog” in German, a language all the different breeds of dogs belonging to Schutzhund training enthusiasts understand.

Schutzhund training is a sport that focuses on the development and evaluation of the traits in dogs that make them true working dogs, whether it is in tracking, obedience, or protection.

The sport was developed in Germany in the early 1900s as a suitability test originally for German Shepherds and was used to determine if the dog had what it takes in terms of traits and characteristics to make it a good working dog. Today, a number of different types of so-called working dog breeds– German Shepherds, Dobermans, Rottweilers, Belgian Malinois, American Bulldogs, and even mixes of the many various breeds – can participate.

The SouthCoast Working Dog Club meets year-round, said the club’s Training Director Mario Gomes.

“We get together and train our dogs,” he said on Friday, May 27. “It’s a hobby. It’s more than a hobby. It’s an addiction.”

The club, which began in Rochester two years ago, currently has 18 members and a total of about 20 dogs involved in the local program. Before being allowed to enter, the dogs are tested to see if they would be suitable for a specific area, and one year later they are considered for approval during one of the trials, like the one held that weekend.

During the trial, the dogs must pass through three levels, starting with the basic level: temperament.

“Not too aggressive, not too shy,” said Gomes.

Schutzhund is an international sport. Even one of the judges present that day was from Austria.

“A few dogs are trying to get to Nationals and to get to Nationals you need 270 points out of 300,” said Gomes. “I got second place in the Nationals,” he said, which took place this year in Illinois.

Gomes’ German Shepherd “Caribou” will now represent the United States at the World Championship in Slovenia this coming September.

To learn more, or to find out if perhaps Fido might make a good Schutzhund dog, email Mario Gomes at maringaland@gmail.com, or visit the SouthCoast Working Dog Club at www.southcoastwdc.com.

By Jean Perry

 

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