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Dobermans first were bred as a watch and guard dog. No
breed excels them at this task. In Chicago, in 1955, one large university
started using trained Dobermans to try to reduce vandalism. Not only was it
reduced, it was eliminated. Last year, in our city newspapers, we had three
accounts of Dobermans that saved the lives of their owners protecting them from
attack or armed robbery.
One of our club members credits his Doberman of only
three weeks ownership with having saved his life when an armed robber invaded
his home.
It is staggering to think of our city and the business
and industries that could benefit financially and in providing safety for
watchmen and employees through the use of trained Dobermans.
One of our club members owns a tavern and has kept
Dobermans for years. The dogs mingle with the customers as long as the
customers are in front of the bar; but if one tries to step behind the bar, he
is met with a big black dog "on guard."
We know of no home or apartment where a Doberman is
allowed to run at large that has been entered or robbed successfully. So great
is the respect for these dogs that their presence is warning enough to
intruders who "plan" an entry. To those who blunder into their crimes, the dog
is better than a burglar alarm.
We have often wondered why insurance companies have
not been alert enough to the values of Dobermans to offer special rates where
trained Dobermans are used. The facts are there. Perhaps it only requires
prompting to get action.
On the gentler side, the Doberman guides the blind. A
few trainers of guide dogs have made statements to the effect that the Doberman
is not suited to this work, but these are comments of the uninformed. Blind
persons all over the country are using Dobermans, and one of the largest
foundations specializing in guide dog work kept records of various breeds in
training. They found the Doberman had the best training record, the best record
for "rejects" and the best record for continued devotion. Naturally, not all
Dobermans are suited to guide dog training, but those that are make wonderful
"eyes" for their masters.
Did you ever think of the Doberman as a field dog? He
has been successfully trained for retrieving and hunting. Many Dobes "point"
naturally and work a scent as retrievers. They have been trained for big game,
where their speed and stamina make them highly successful in tracking and
treeing mountain lions and other big and dangerous predators.
Where police departments have been wise enough to see
the many advantages of trained dogs, the Doberman has found a role in keeping
order in human society.
Dobermans have been used to teach safety to children.
Probably the most famous performer in safety education in the nation is a
Doberman known as "Safety Girl." A Detroit policeman trained her to show
primary grade children how to cross streets and he and "Safety Girl" have
travelled all over the nation. In Fort Wayne, Charles Dunifun, also a
policeman, uses his Dobermans in the same way.
Dobermans have a unique spot in obedience trials in
dog shows, The whole training movement in America came through Dobermans.
Dobermans were taken from show to show giving demonstrations. Many of the
founders of training clubs were Doberman people; and when it came to War Dog
work, these Doberman folk became the leaders. Today, those of us who want a
great performing dog in obedience work usually turn to Dobermans. As one top
professional trainer and exhibitor says, "In obedience a top working Doberman
can be topped only by another Doberman. No other breed can compete for
cleanness, speed and performance."
These, then, are some of the uses of a
Doberman—guard, guide, field, police, stunt and obedience. In all the
Doberman excels and has a unique place.
The beauty of a Doberman
An all rounder
judge once said, "Even a poor specimen of a Doberman is a truly beautiful dog."
One lives near us and seldom do I drive home and see him running with the other
dogs of the neighborhood but what I think, 'look at that gorgeous animal.' I
know he isn't a very good specimen, but a Doberman stands out from all other
breeds.
This quality is not an accident. Though the Doberman
was originally bred for its character, the breed was taken over by a group of
men who sought a geometrically and esthetically perfect dog. They bred to a
design. The design was based on mathematical equation and function principles.
They began with what they wanted the dog to do—to be a short-backed
galloper, to be agile, to be fast, to be powerful, to be sturdy—and they
worked out the proportions and principles of movement that would be necessary.
A square dog, a dog with ample body, a dog with long muzzle, etc. His legs were
to be just so long and angled a certain way to let him move true and to let him
move with speed and quick changes of direction. They applied this ideal form to
a breeding program, and in less than twenty years had evolved just about our
present breed type. To this mathematical outline, they added features for
beauty—a sleek, dry coat, with precise, clean markings: a long, arched
neck for balance and nobility, a dark eye, almond in shape and set fairly deep,
for appearance only. This is the Doberman you see today. A dog with "beauty
built-in." There is no such thing as an ugly Doberman today. There are some
that are closer to perfection than others, that is all.
The Doberman in pose is a noble and lovely thing. But
the most thrilling part of a Doberman's beauty is in action. When you take your
dog out into a field and let him run and you see him lay out in a smooth
flowing gallop—this is the Doberman that is without peer—a dog of
dogs. An animal so natural you think that all evolution has been aimed at him;
and yet the precise control of selected breedings of little more than 50 years
is what has crystallized this form and motion.
The character of a Doberman
Each Doberman
is different, yet each exhibits "Doberman characteristics of mind and
disposition." We have never owned one that was not a "character." Some are more
so than others.
Called the dog with the human mind, the Doberman will
do just about everything but talk, and often a Doberman will hold quite lengthy
conversations with you about something that is very important to him at the
moment.
Probably the most distinguishing thing about a
Doberman is the speed of reaction. Where another dog is doing one thing, a
Doberman will do ten. They learn through watching, they learn through trial and
error and often they seem to reason things out.
It isn't unusual to have a Doberman that opens doors.
One of ours has been known to move a chair over to the stove so as to climb up
to steal a roast from the top of the stove. Another was known to methodically
lift out petunia plants from a newly planted bed, and then get concerned
because the bed didn't look right and spend ten minutes trying to put the
plants back again.
Though deeply loyal, they are clowns with minds of
their own. We have heard of one great obedience worker who would get a peeve on
at his owner. When the dog was in one of his "peeves" the owner knew something
would be done at the next show. Just what only time would tell. The dog was
known to go out on his scent work and bury the articles. He was known to do his
directed jumping in reverse. His prize performance came one day when he worked
beautifully until he was left on the sits and downs. Just as his owner left the
ring the dog left his position, scampered over and swatted his owner on the
seat of the pants and returned to the place he had been left and sat as if
nothing had happened.
Another great obedience Doberman performed beautifully
one hot day. On the long down, the owner was out of sight and the Dobe inched
forward until she was in the shade. Just before the time was up for the
handlers to return to the ring, she inched back again to her original
position!
The loyalty of Dobermans is beyond most of us to be
understood. It extends not only to their owners but to their companions. Males
in particular become deeply attached to females with whom they are raised. It
is not unusual to hear of Dobes that mourn to death for a lost mate. Nor is it
unusual to hear of Dobermans that recognize a friend after years of
separation.
The world of Doberman lore is so filled with stories
it would take books to tell them all—the Doberman who loved ice cream and
would charge up to neighbor children and bark in their faces until they dropped
their cones: then she would grab the cone and eat it. "I used to have to buy
more ice cream for my neighbor's children," her owner used to say. The Doberman
who grew jealous of his mistress talking on the telephone and would go to the
closet, bring out a pair of shoes, plop them down in front of her and threaten
to chew them if she didn't hang up. The Doberman who tip-toed around the house
whenever her mistress had a headache. The Doberman who sings for food. The
Doberman who was not allowed to guard because his mate was the guard
dog—but when she had pups, he took over guard duty until she weaned the
pups; then he retired again and raised the pups himself. Sometime we hope to
write a book filled with the stories of what Doberman "characters" have done,
and when we do, we hope to have in it some of the accounts of what your
Doberman has done. For each is different, but each is a character—a
beloved character.
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