Are German Shepherds the preferred breed of work dog? Why not Dobermans or another breed?
Actually, these days the Belgian Malinois is often the first choice of police departments, military and government agencies. Training a dog for law enforcement requires many very specific qualities to come together. These include: natural instincts such as prey drive, defense drive, play drive, hardness and a strong nervous system. The German Shepherd and the Belgian Malinois stand out in their unique makeup of these qualities. Other breeds can also be found serving in law enforcement, just in lesser numbers. By the way, Steven has just purchased a Belgian Malinois! Are working dogs purchased from specific breeders for the purpose of being trained for the force? It is not so much a matter of specific breeders as it is specific breeding programs. Most dogs in K9 Law Enforcement are imported from Europe. They do so for very specific reasons. The breeding of working dogs (German Shepherds and Belgian Malinois) is controlled in Europe by the breed registries (equivalent to the AKC in the U
