What language are police dogs trained in? Here’s the Answer

What Other Languages Are Police Dogs Trained In?

Most of the time, police dogs are trained in German. This is because the majority of police dogs are German Shepherds, who originated in Germany or Belgium.

Originally, police dogs were trained in Europe, and then shipped to the USA ready to work, this is why German has always been the most common language which these dogs are trained in.

But, not all police dogs are trained in German. In fact, these dogs are trained in a wide variety of languages. But, after German, the next most common language which K-9 dogs are trained in is Dutch.

However, this is rare, and you will find that the majority of police dogs in the USA are trained in Schutzhund commands.

You might be wondering why German has been chosen over some other European languages, such as Spanish and French. This is mainly because German is a harsh language, and this means that it is perfect for making commands.

Every German word sounds like a command, so when single words are used the dog will clearly hear it, and understand what they have to do. So even though other languages are used to train police dogs, German will always be the most common.

Police Dogs Imported From Germany Have A German Background

Before we get to know why most of these working dogs are trained in German, we need to understand where they come from. Police forces could get their canines from multiple sources. Some dog owners donate their dogs to the police, while some dogs are imported from Europe.

Dogs imported from Europe have some advantages over those raised in the USA. First of all, these dogs are bred according to certain criteria to ensure that they’re in their best shape and mental capability. They also go through high-quality training and receive an international certificate before being exported to the USA.

Are police dogs trained in different languages?

The real reason is much simpler — the dogs were trained with those command words, and it’s much easier for the officer to learn a few Dutch or German words than to retrain the dog with new commands.

Training Dogs In German So They Don’t Take Commands From Other People “Urban Legends” Debunked

Because police dogs are usually German Shepherd dogs, they often come from Europe and come trained with German dog commands. Police dogs are taught the following German dog commands before they are ready for police service: Sit: Sitz (zitz)