Webster’s dictionary defines obedience as the quality or condition of being obedient and the act of obeying. But Jerry Bradshaw, training director and president of Tarheel Canine Training , defines the word a little differently.

He explains when handlers define obedience according to the dictionary definition, they could actually be suppressing a police dog’s drives.

“This can create a lot of problems,” he says. “Old-school trainers will say obedience is the foundation of all we do. But when we are talking about police dogs, their natural instincts to hunt and use their senses is really the foundation. Obedience and command structures allow us to access and channel their natural drives for police work.”

He says a better word for obedience is “control.”

Modern police K9 obedience, he says, embodies the handler's ability to bring a dog from an energetic drive state to a controlled drive state. As an example, a dog might want to bark like crazy because he wants to do a building search. The handler must be able to get the dog to stop barking and internalize that drive until the command to search is given so officers can formulate a tactical plan without the dog barking and becoming a distraction or compromising their position.

“We have to take these dogs with very high arousal levels, who are naturally very excited when they are getting ready to work and get them to hold it inside (internalize)  for a while,” he says. “We don’t want the dog to get too antsy and we don’t want them to be so excited that they are out of control. We teach dogs to restrain and control their drives through obedience training, and that actually helps us focus all that energy when we need it on the task at hand.”

This control is a must in police work, he stresses. “When we deploy a dog on a threat, it is crucial to have the ability to stop them,” he explains. “We need them to remain attentive to the threat, but able to process control commands as a reflex. The officer controls the beginning and the end of the drive state."

Obedience Without Drive Suppression

Controlling a police dog without suppressing their drive is a feat that is easier said than done, according to Bradshaw.

Incorrectly performed obedience exercises can confuse dogs about their handlers’ expectations. A dog that’s over-corrected during training, for example, may quickly see obedience commands as a negative.

The goal is to train the K9 to move from expressive to what are called “capped” states where the dog internalizes drive for short periods prior to an action, or manage their arousal levels more generally, which trainers call “neutrality.” He adds, “Obedience training is not so much the foundation of all we do, but the conduit we use to manage the dog’s instincts properly.”

According to Bradshaw, it is essential for handlers to master these skills. When handlers use more force than is necessary, he says they will often suppress the dog or create “safety seeking behaviors,” where the dog is trying to do something to make the punishment stop, and that can involve running to the handler and creates dogs that are less independent and “worried” about what the handler wants rather than focusing on the task at hand.

“The dog will become more worried about getting into the heel position, for example, than what is in front of them,” he says.

“Obedience must be applied properly to leverage the dog’s drive and reward systems must be well understood,” he says. “You have to understand things like marker systems so you can call attention to both good behavior and inappropriate behavior in the moment.

“With a negative marker, we’re saying that behavior is not appropriate right now,” he says. “I need you to lie down and be quiet. Reward markers signal to the dog that its behavior is correct and a reward is coming!

Effective communication between the dog and handler helps the dog understand desired and undesired behaviors and helps bridge the communication gap between humans and dog, according to Bradshaw.

Progression Over Time

The author of “ Controlled Aggression ,” a book designed to help handlers understand the fundamentals of K9 aggression training for police service dogs, says the techniques to achieve this level of control would take more than a short article to cover. Still, he summarizes how obedience training would work.

When working with a young, green dog, the trainer wants to encourage the dog to express its drives. Here they must teach the K9 to hunt for a person or contraband, get on track and stay on it, and work through fatigue and tough conditions.

“We are calling on their innate prey drive, for example,” he says.

Next, the trainer works with the dog to regulate or cap those drives. The trainer lets the dog get excited, then applies obedience training techniques to pause the drive and temper that excitement. For instance, a young dog might be excited for their food. The trainer will ask them to sit and hold that sit for a few seconds before they can have it. They learn drive regulation is the key to earning their rewards.

Over time, the trainer intensifies this process by increasing arousal levels and using toy and decoy rewards eventually. “We get them excited, then make them sit and hold that sit for a few seconds, before we release them to a toy,” he says. "This progresses through higher and higher arousal levels. We manage the intensity of drive and duration of their capped states."

Eventually, handlers introduce controlled aggression training with decoys. This training technique focuses on getting the dog to reach its maximum level of excitement, then teaches them to regulate their arousal, hunting, searching and biting only when directed.

Rewards That Work

“A reward is a reward because the dog feels like it’s a reward,” Bradshaw says. “It has to be something they want.”

In the beginning, that reward might be food. Eating puts dogs into a relatively more relaxed state versus a toy making beginning obedience easier to train with food, and allowing more repetitions and avoiding possession conflicts over toys, but trainers can move away from food when they start seeing the dog understands their commands, and their accountability.

“We introduce rewards that have higher value to the dogs such as tugs or balls,” he says. “We do obedience work around those things, helping them to understand that no matter what the situation or context, they need to regulate their drives.”

Bradshaw says in the learning phases of training rewards build a better work ethic and allow us to work with the dog’s drives rather than fighting them.  

“We always have to think about rewarding the dogs for the things they do right. Then, when appropriate, hold them accountable for those behaviors when it’s a high stakes situation,” he says. “We need these dogs to exert control because an uncontrolled police dog would be a liability to the department and the public. These dogs must be able to emotionally manage their arousal states.”

Markers also can help a dog understand what the handler wants, according to Bradshaw.

A marker is a signal from the handler that tells the dog it is doing the right thing. It is a cue that tells the dog if they continue this behavior, reinforcement will follow. A marker might be a clicker that makes a sound or vibration that the dog recognizes as positive reinforcement, or even a word or a specific way of petting them that says they are doing well.

“We are signally to the dog that they did the right thing,” he says. “For example, you might recall a dog and when he’s halfway to you, give them the down command. If the dog lays down fast, you can mark the behavior and release him to the reward! When he runs over to you, you can reward him. This allows us to use markers as a bridge over distance and time from behavior to reward delivery.”

Bradshaw adds punishment markers also are used to correct a dog. For example, handlers might mark a bad behavior using using the word "no," and following it with a leash correction. This classical conditioning gives the marker power during off-leash applications.

“But mostly, you want to call attention to the things the dog is doing well,” he says. “You need to be very precise in marking good behavior and marking unacceptable behavior. This creates more clarity of communication. It allows us to have a better relationship with the dog, so they understand why they are receiving positive reinforcement or a correction.”

Ask for Help

Bradshaw stresses many police handlers do not understand the procedures and techniques that will help them better control their dogs, even during high arousal states and distractions.

“Handlers need a theoretical understanding of obedience and be able to apply that theory,” Bradshaw emphasizes. “That comes from working with people who have experience using various modalities of conditioning theory to create the behaviors we want.”

Bradshaw recommends reaching out to knowledgeable trainers, not only those who train police dogs but also those who train dogs for sporting activities.

For example, Bradshaw has trained his dogs for competitive protection sports since 1991. He has competed in the National Championships trails in both Schutzhund and PSA, winning the PSA National Championships in 2003 with his dog Ricardo v.d. Natuurzicht PSA 3 and then again in 2019 and 2020 with his dog Raptor PSA 3.

Bradshaw also has trained many Belgian Malinois to the highest titles in the sports in which he competed, including Arrow of Tigerpaws, SchH 3, BH; Ben von Lowenfels, SchH 2, BH; Rocky de la Maison Des Lions PSA 3; and Ricardo v.d. Natuurzicht PH 1, PSA 3, Raptor PSA 4, Drago PSA 2 and Fire PSA 1.

These experiences arm him with many control techniques that also work well with police dogs.

“In competitive protection sports, you need a very high level of control over some very powerful dogs,” he says. “Those same techniques can be leveraged in police work as well.”

According to Bradshaw, handlers might have to backtrack in training to establish a stronger foundation for improved dog compliance.

“The most important thing to do is to connect with experienced trainers who can help them get excellent control over their dogs without sacrificing their drive and motivation to do the work,” he says. “That can help a lot in terms of knowing what to do, how to apply it, and when to make adjustments.”

Tarheel Canine is available to provide training in obedience and in various police K9 disciplines. To inquire about training, contact Bradshaw at Jbradshaw@tarheelcanine.com .