Specialist Defence Dog, or PSO

What is a Specialised Defence Dog?

Over 20 years ago, we trained dogs as part of a series of training courses dedicated to PSO, the aim of which was to train, standardise and certify defence dogs that do not track.

The PSO exercises included obedience training and defence work. The scent work aspect was omitted. Defence exercises included not only standard forms of attack on a decoy (frontal attack and decoy escape) but also escorting and preventing escape.

Specialist Defence Dog – who is it for?

As PSO was not a sport but was certified by the ZKWP at the time, it was met with a positive response from:

• Municipal Police

• Security firms that employed dogs on duty

• Private owners of mixed-breed dogs

• Private owners of pedigree dogs who did not compete

• Dog owners wishing to have a certified dog for civil defence purposes.