He calls it a hobby.
But the time, energy and love that Hollister resident Jesus
Banderas puts into training his German Shepherd in the sport of
Schutzhund resembles something more along the lines of a
passion.
He calls it a hobby.
But the time, energy and love that Hollister resident Jesus Banderas puts into training his German Shepherd in the sport of Schutzhund resembles something more along the lines of a passion.
Schutzhund stems from a German word meaning “protection dog.”
It began in the early 1900s in Germany as a way to train dogs in tracking, obedience and protection – specifically to maintain the working ability of the dogs.
It has been a popular sport in Europe for years, and has recently been catching on in the states, with Schutzhund clubs and competitions all over the country. Banderas is a devout member of the Monterey Bay Schutzhund Club.
For Banderas, it was his love of German Shepherds that lured him into the sport about eight years ago, and has held him in its clutches ever since.
“I guess you’ve got to like dogs, and I always have – as long as I can remember,” he said.
In 1994 Banderas moved to Hollister and commuted to his job in Watsonville, where he would pass by a house where he always saw German Shepherds outside.
After about a year of continually telling himself one day he would stop and inquire about a puppy, he finally did.
The man who sold Banderas his dog, Willie Ortner, happened to be one of the first people to start Schutzhund in America. After talking to Ortner about the sport, Banderas tried it and was instantly hooked.
“It just opened my eyes,” Banderas said. “I put in a lot of time. Sometimes too much time, at least everybody thinks I do, but I don’t. It’s like anybody that has a hobby – just mine’s dogs.”
Schutzhund is comprised of three stages – Schutzhund I, Schutzhund II and Schutzhund III. During the competitions, or trials, the dogs are judged on their proficiency in tracking, obedience and protection. To become a Schutzhund III, the dog must excel in all three categories.
In the tracking phase the dog uses his sense of smell to follow a mapped-out path, keeping his head down and following specific guidelines the entire time.
Obedience consists of heeling, retrieving objects and other exercises that demonstrate a high level of the owner’s control and the dog’s compliance.
The most active and explosive phase, protection, tests the dog to search out and hold an adversary and then attack the person.
To advance a dog to a Schutzhund III takes about three years of training because the standards are so high and the judges are strict, Banderas said.
“Because it’s a sport and we’re trying to get points, when they bite they have to be nice and calm and bite exactly where they’re supposed to – no growling or dirty bites,” he said. “They have to be perfectly behaved.”
Banderas has trained several dogs since he began, but roadblocks have gotten in his way of being a major competitor, he said.
After becoming a Schutzhund III, his first dog suddenly died of gastric bloat – a severe bloating of the stomach that can be common in large dogs such as Shepherds. His second dog had too much energy to conform to the strict rules Schutzhund has, so he ended up selling it.
His third dog he bought from Germany as an adult because he didn’t want to go through the puppy stage again. It had problems with tracking, and although Banderas worked diligently with the dog to master this stage, he couldn’t do it.
He eventually sold it to the Santa Rose Police Department.
“It can be frustrating. You try and you try and you try, but every dog is different,” he said. “There’s a lot to it and it’s a lot of fun… but sometimes you just have to move on.”
He is now back with a puppy, and has high hopes that after eight years, this might be the dog to take him all the way in the competitive world of Schutzhund.
There are three major trials in the United States, and the trainers who get the best scores from two out of the three competitions can make the USA team.
The USA team competes in the worldwide Schutzhund competition, which Banderas has his eye on.
“One day,” he said. “I’ve been all over California and to the Nationals in Denver, but I haven’t had a dog where I can get up there. But this one’s working out really good.”
Away from the practice field, Banderas treats his dog like any other pet – chastising it when it tries to get comfy on his bed, taking it for a walk every day and spoiling it like most people do with a favorite pet.
However, Banderas expends more time and a lot more money on his dog than most pet owners.
In addition to the upwards of 20 hours a week he spends training, he’s spent thousands of dollars traveling to Schutzhund seminars, buying equipment and medical expenses, not to mention the hefty price tag attached to the dog alone (each dog can cost up to $1,500).
And with the dog’s expensive daily diet of a half a pound to a pound of ground beef mixed in with a high-quality brand of dog food, cottage cheese and vitamins, he’s ready to have a dog that will give him back as much as he’s put in.
“Eventually I’m going to try to get a couple of acres somewhere with a field, maybe get a female and maybe breed,” Banderas said. “But that’s down the road. For now, it’s step by step.”
