We are a group of individuals training for a variety of protection-dog sports. Using the specific title requirements set forth by each sport’s parent organization, our training is geared to help each handler achieve the highest-possible levels for his/her dog. It is essential that individuals establish self-directed training goals; if you don’t know what you/your dog wants, we can’t tell you. Yet with such diverse backgrounds and years of experience, we offer one another abundant support and constructive feedback in training. For the uninitiated, it’s crucial to stress that all of these sports are designed to provide working dogs with safe, controlled training and structured outlets. These are not attack dogs but family protection dogs. Protection-dog sports are akin to the martial arts, rather than hostile, unfocused aggression.
The four primary protection sports MRC members pursue are Schutzhund, Mondio Ring, French Ring, and PSA (Protection Sports Association). Below are brief explanations of each sport, with appropriate links.
 

Special thanks to all whose material we cribbed...    and  thanks to Jeremy Norton for taking his down time to write up our "about us" page...

All of the videos in this website are "club" dogs at actual trials.

Schutzhund
Schutzhund originated as a German police-dog suitability test and is the largest and most well-known of the protection dog sports. There are three components to the Schutzhund test: Tracking, Obedience, and Protection. Trials generally follow this routine, tracking first thing in the morning, then the obedience, then the protection. The dogs have a break between exercises. The Germans are known for precision and consistency, and that is very clear if one compares Schutzhund to the Ringsports. There are few surprises in Sch. Everyone knows the routines, the bitework, the ‘perfect picture’ that the judge is looking for. The challenge is achieving the utmost perfection in movement, timing, reaction, appearance. For bitework, the dogs bite a hard jute sleeve during an established routine. The judge awards points for intensity, depth and quality of bite, accuracy and control.
Schutzhund tracking is scent tracking with article indications; it follows a pre-laid pattern. Training the tracking is a learned love, and many people have difficulty with the patience and discipline of early morning training tracks.
Schutzhund’s OB routine follows a specific heeling pattern on and off leash, with retrieves over obstacles, positions in motion, sendouts, and a long down. There is a gunfire distraction as well as another dog on the field.
The protection simulates a prolonged ‘battle’ with an assailant. First the dog must run through a series of blinds to ‘find’ the helper. Then he must bark & hold the helper, simulating finding a bad guy and alerting the handler. The dog must release and return to his handler’s side while the helper is called out of hiding. The helper then tries to escape and the dog must catch him. They escort the helper around the field, with two attempts at escaping. Finally, there is a long send, or a courage test, where the dog must go towards a charging helper, strike the sleeve, be driven, out and regrip, and escort the bad guy to the judge.

 VIDEOS:       Sch3 Blinds & CS      Sch2 obedience       Sch1 track          Sch3 protection

French Ringsport
French Ring obedience consists of heeling on and off leash, including a portion with muzzle, three different types of retrieves, food refusal, one-minute down stay with the handler out of sight, and position changes from a distance. The dog must heel with the handler and be under complete control at all times. The judge docks a team points, rather than selectively awarding points, and the specific requirements for dog and handler positioning are much more specific than in the other sports. If Sch is Germanic in its rigor of consistency, French ring in Gallic in the championing of smooth, precise appearance. Beauty within form is key.
Agility consists of a 4four-ft hurdle (RI,RII,RIII), a 10-15ft long jump(RII,RIII), and a 8ft climbing wall(RIII). There is no tracking, and the agility portion starts each dog’s trial.
In the protection phase the decoy is actually opposed to the dog. He, as a decoy, is a judge himself and his role in the trial is to try to find and exploit any weakness in the dog or the training of the dog. They do this by use of the baton (clatter stick), making a barrage to try and bluff the dog and by most importantly the use of esquive (escape) trying to make the dog miss at the point of what would be impact. In most other protection based sports, the target is clearly presented to the dog and is readily available for him to engage. In FR, the dog learns that there is a very good chance that the target that looks available could very well not be there when it comes time to engage so he must have the reflexes, clarity, and foundation work to make tactical decisions as to catch the decoy.

 VIDEOS:     FR1 and brevet

PSA
PSA is a new, American-born competitive dog sport. It combines aspects of Schutzhund’s obedience patterns and judging criteria, Mondio’s elaborate distractions, and several ‘street-real’ situations, including a car-jacking scenario.
One aspect that distinguishes PSA from many other dog sports is the division of program between the two entry levels (1-Novice and 1-Open) and the two upper levels. Where most sports incrementally increase the challenge, rigors, and expectation on a dog as it ascends the levels, PSA demands two very different types of intensity. None of the other sports present as much vocal and physical decoy opposition and pressure on a dog in the entry levels. In many ways, the PSA-1s are character and nerve tests. The dog must have the control to pass the obedience portion, particularly the distractions on the field and gunfire, and then it must be able to take immense pressure from a charging decoy. Many good ring dogs have problems adjusting to the forward charging, screaming decoys–who often are toting large, moving distractions (hula-hoops, 30 gallon-milk jugs tied together, laundry detegent bottles filled with pebbles and pennies and bedecked with three-foot streamers, water pistols, water jugs, water hoses). Because of the dynamic ‘attack’ of the decoys, the dogs aren’t always presented with an optimal bite opportunity, and they must have the drive and perseverance to keep after a decoy bent on ‘running’ him from the field.
The 1-Open division also has surprise scenarios, which are announced (or dreamed up) the morning of the trial, using the materials and layout of the field to shape some form of mental, control, and focus challenge for handler and dog. The upper two levels actually bring less actual pressure from the decoys, but they require a much stronger control and understanding between dog and handler. The upper levels have jumps, tunnels, retrieves of strange objects (including metal), hurdles, heeling around agitating decoys, call-offs, change of positions on/under objects. There is no guidebook, only what the judges are struck by; like Mondio, there are fundamental requirements (change of position, recall with distraction, hurdle, heeling with three stops, etc) but no set pattern.

VIDEOS:     Surprise scenerio PSA1 open        PSA courage send PSA1open

With thanks to Sharon Novak for  the following is a brief comparison of French and Mondio Ringsport.

FR starts w/ jumps, obedience, and protection work. MR goes from obedience to jumps to protection work. MR palisade has a “ramp” and there is no “return jump” like FR. Both maxes are 2.3 meter.
FR heeling pattern is laid out around/in a square defined by four traffic cones. MR heeling pattern is judge’s choice and can require the handler to change levels, go thru doors, and other stuff.
The possibilities for FR retrieve are wearable gloves, wearable sock, glasses’ case, “knotted” handkerchief. All these items are scented with and provided by the handler for himself or herself. Except for the brevet, which has handler’s choice, the MR retrieve is the judge’s choice. It can be ANY object (NOT metal or glass) that is less than 1 kilo in weight.
FR positions have the handler always standing away from the dog at a distance of 18 meters. In MR, the distances for positions increases from level I, II, & III, being 5m, 10m, 15 meters respectively. While giving commands, the handler may be required to be behind, under or on something and they might have to stand, sit, or even lie down.
Food Refusal uses a few more pieces in FR, but the “offering” is more varied in Mondio, with the offer done from someone sitting, standing or walking by, etc., and can be done while the handler is gone or present. At level I & II, both sports also have extra foods just lying on the field, which, if eaten, will cost multiple points.
Send out is essentially the same with the major exception being that the exercise is required for MR1 and not required until FR3.
Absence in FR is with no distraction. In Mondio, there is a distraction from 10 meters for level I & level II, and from 5 meters in level III.
Perhaps most significantly in bitework, Mondio decoys may only use esquives in the object guard, transport and when the dog has entry problems. FR can uses equives before the dog’s entry. The Mondio decoy may never hit the dog with the stick or accessory. FR decoys just use stick and after the dog is biting, the decoy may hit the dog on the back quarters.
FR defense-of-handler is linear in path, with the aggression (“hit”) on the shoulder from behind, with one decoy. Mondio defense can use other decoy/s or non-decoys in the scenario, which should be different each trial. The decoy in FR may “hit” the handler lightly w/ one hand, but the MR decoy must “hit” the handler with TWO HANDS for TWO SECONDS. The mondio aggression can be on the handler’s back, shoulder or UPPER chest. The aggression can happen when the handler is moving or stationary, as well as when the handler is sitting, standing, lying down, or in “transit” to any of those positions. During the Mondio defense, the handler can be required to throw/ push/pull/carry things, move about the field –on perhaps different levels (steps, over things, etc). The handler may also have to walk around, with, towards, away from decoy, and decoy can do same and more.
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Most likely the greatest difference is the “opposition” that the dog faces with the decoy. Even greater is the difference of opinion on which sport is more difficult for the dog, but then that’s a whole other discussion.