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Posted by Leri on 4/21/2008, 9:19 pm, in reply to "Re: Dog Aggresion in Schutzhund"
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I'd have to agree with both Erin and John on this one.
If we have a clear understanding of the ultimate goal we would ideally start conditioning/imprinting focused attention or even active play/interaction on us, around distractions (decoys/dogs) as early as possible. But often many people aren't even turned onto sport work until their dog is a little older, or has had a few "accidents". This can make things more difficult of course.
It's true, even with a less aggressive dog we always have concerns during long sits/downs or in a simple CGC meet/greet - but training (good training) will normally allow you the opportunity to reach realistic goals.
I have few concerns about my dogs breaking to mess with another dog. BASIC FUNDAMENTALS (sit/down/come/stay) are solid before I ever consider trialing. I have more concern for the other dog that breaks and goes to my dog. This in itself can create HUGE training problems not only around other dogs but for out of sight exercises as well! Especially in training - when in doubt, DONT! It's SOOOOOO important to train with people you TRUST! People who have a good understanding of the breed and who know (care enough about) your experience and training level. Good training clubs or individuals will only have you and your dogs best interest in mind which is to set you up for success!
Training to a level that requires dogs to be off leash is always risky. I've been paired up with other teams that concerned me. Funny thing is the other team that was concerned about my dog ended up having THEIR dog break! 
BTW, it's from the NOVICE "A" class (A = people who've never competed a dog before) that have more "accidents" during group exercises then any other class! This makes perfect sense since these are the very beginners!
I have seen a few dogs who would veer off course of a long bite if a dog were standing on the sidelines barking. In this case I consider it to be a complete disrespect for handler/command/task and truthfully, these dogs never really had consistent/focused training.
If a dog is breaking on a regular basis it could be the dog is just not cut out for the work. Reliable teamwork is earned through mutual trust and respect which often takes a lifetime to build.
Bottom line - more often then not blatant dog aggression with a TRAINED dog is complete disrespect for the handler.
Geez, the more I think about dog/dog the more I'm happy to be doing Ring. Only ONE dog on the field at a time EVER! Something to consider if you have a bang up dog who struggles with control around animals 
Leri
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