Team K9 INTERVENTION is an energetic and diverse team with a wealth of experience, ranging from, but not limited to; Military Mechanised Infantry command and conventional operations, Parachute operations and training, Police, National Intelligence, to social and Private Security operations. The team’s expertise and understanding of operations, dog-operations, and dog management is phenomenal. The team’s love for dog matter comes straight from the heart.

We at K9 Intervention has found the connection between social and/or private dog matter, and the operational security market. Our concept merges different K9 concepts and abilities into one. Our collective skill, allows us to integrate and establish harmony in the larger K9 market. We serve the public through; Private and social owner dog training, manufacturing and supply of dog accessories, providing advice and support, to rendering high quality alike ability to the operational sector; which is not limited to, Private security, Policing sector, Correctional and Military Dog Unit’s. We also extend most of our services to the International requesting client.

We have strong management skills, ranging from continuous development of strategic objectives, to analytical thinking, to solving complex situations and problems. This ability comes from years of military deployment as part of African Peace Keeping and Peace Enforcement operations, under the umbrella of the African Union, and the United Nations. Not only does our team possess military and policing skills, but also have their roots stemmed as academics within the training and development landscape of South Africa. Our complete quality management system (QMS), is aligned with the National Qualification Framework (NQF), and related organizations and Institutions. This ability makes us a forerunner in our field of expertise, and a definite force to be reckoned with.

We have a high regard for people, and people’s ability to make magic with their God-given talents and abilities. Our call-of-duty       is to help people with their dogs, to train the social and private K9 market, to establish and capacitate Security Dog Unit’s, and to start life-long friendships wherever we set our feet.

Let us become part of your family, and let us share in your dog stories. Let us make memories together.

WHY WE ARE INSPIRED BY DOGS?

I never seem to forget our first dog we had as a family. I am not referring the family dog as a kid, and the one that belonged to everyone in my childhood household, but the one that I called mine. This was that one dog that I could not wait to spend time with. Sometimes I thought I was the one that taught my dog, and showed her all the tricks and skills I could, but today I understand that she trained me. She taught me patience, and showed me the power of control. She developed my emotional intelligence, and some abilities I only realized later in her lifetime. She showed me diversity, and even got me to brush up on some interpersonal skills when we joined our first club together.

Her name was “SNOWY”, and the only white Swiss Shepherd amongst a traditional black & tan German Shepherd dog litter. Our journey started, when my wife selected her from her brothers and sisters at only 5-weeks old. Snowy was not our dog, but became family from the moment she got into the car with us. Me and my wife spent all the time we could possibly have with her. She was washed with baby shampoo, and powdered to give off that soft baby touch and fragrance, with her coat literally as white as snow. She accompanied us to all events, shops and malls, as we became inseparable. Aloise gave her the best, as she was our baby, and nothing less.

As she developed over the next few months, we learnt about her character, her features, her health issues, her coat, paws and jaws. We watched how her teeth developed, to biting and chewing habits, that was unknown to us. Our Snowy was a happy dog. She loved trips in the car, hanging around with her “mom” in the kitchen, to taking a shower with her “dad”. She also loved playing with her squeaky toy. Boy, was she good with her squeaky toy, and it kept her busy for hours.

Snowy was growing up, and at about 12-weeks old, when her first vaccinations were complete, we joined a local Dog Club in our region. This was the best thing ever we could do for our “dog-child”. Not only was she a special dog to us, but ironically the only white dog amongst a club full of traditional black and tan German Shepherd dogs. We were so proud seeing her having fun during the weekly training sessions, and amongst the other dogs in the club. Our attitudes and satisfaction could almost be described as happy parents, seeing their first child off to school. Her first subject and objectives was basic obedience, which lasted for about 6-months.

During this period, she has learnt about acceptable social interaction with other dogs, including basic commands, but not limited to; sit, stay, walking at the heel, left and right turn, halt (to stop), and a recall after a short stay. I’ve learnt that Snowy thrived on praise, and after an activity was concluded successfully. Not only did I get to introduce these skills to Snowy, but rather got to learn how to become a good trainer. Except for the weekly 2-hour training session at dog school, I spent an additional 2-hours per day training Snowy on a small open patch of ground down the street where we lived. Snowy sometimes became to irritated with us, but we believed, that a trained dog is a happy dog.

Snowy progressed so well, that she moved toward the intermediate level within 3-4 months of age. During the intermediate phase of training, we were introduced to high stress levels, and required to function even better during high energy exercises and activities. I did not want to lose a moment with her, so I trained even harder during the week, to ensure that my trainer was satisfied with my dog’s progress during regular group training activities.

As hard as I trained Snowy, she trained me. She made me to focus on the detail to dog-training. The way she walked, the way she sat, and her alertness to respond to commands and instructions given to her was phenomenal. I sometimes wish, I had access to the technology we have today back then, I would’ve captured every training moment me and my wife had with Snowy.

At about 6-months of age, my wife was about to give birth to our first born, and we believed that Snowy knew all about this. I saw it in the way she handled my wife, and possibly listened to the ultra-sonic sounds our unborn baby made. As Snowy stayed inside the house from the age of only 5-weeks old, we started discussing that Snowy might have to move to her forever dog house outside our home when the baby would make her arrival. Because she was in training, we had to prepare her for moving out, and knew that it might be something would not understand. Throughout all our discussions, we always consulted our local and competent VET wrt possible approaches.

Eventually the day arrived, and Snowy moved to outside the house. The first three days was hard on all parties, but something that had to be done. We also understood that Snowy had to learn to fulfil her family protection responsibility, which would never have been fully achieved if she was to stay inside the with us. Within a week, she mastered the ability to literally be seen at two places at the same time, because of her swiftness and speed. Her routine was to move around the house, from the left to the right, as she tracked our movement on the inside.

Our baby-girl grew up, and Snowy had an additional reason to master and fulfil her protective instinct. She became my benchmark for family protection dogs. I absolutely adored her. E never saw her sleep, as she was always on guard.

Between the age 9-12 months, we observed her ability to attack, track and detect, and was advised to develop whatever skills came forth from this amazing dog. She soon progressed to advanced level obedience, and off-leash training. Her advanced obedience ability, paved the way to continue with “man-work”/ attack training, human scent tracking, and substance detection training. She never seemed to stop amazing me, and inspired me to keep training, and to focus on the abilities that she possessed.

When Snowy reached the age of 3 years, she was like a machine to me, because she could literally do everything. Her priority drive was to protect her family, which in the meantime grew to the number 4. Until her death at the age of 10 years old, she never let her guard down once! Her skills and ability was phenomenal, and I was stunned every time I laid my eyes on her. Snowy was one amazing dog. I remember my tears and crying that Sunday morning when I went outside. For the first time in 10 years, she was not at the door to meet me. This was not normal, because she always knew when we were about to come out, even if we wanted to trick her. I immediately rushed out to go and look for her, and there I found her half warm body lying under the kitchen window where she used to be on a Sunday morning, when my wife was busy in the kitchen preparing our Sunday meal. I burst into tears, because I knew that she spent her last moments, being on guard for my wife, and listening how she used to sing in the kitchen whilst busy with her activities. I also knew it must have been not too long ago, when Snowy blew out her last breath. Tears flushed from my eyes, and I believed that when the first tear hit her half warm body, that it was my reward to her, for the loyalty that she gave us for a full ten years.

We could now reflect on an amazing dog, that possessed all the skills, and just what any Trainer would need to be inspired. Snowy allowed me to see her level of intelligence, her adaptability, discover my own strength, taught me the detail to dog training and handling.

Suddenly I had that light bulb moment, when the question I had on what Snowy’s purpose was in our life’s, and boy, was it a lot. She was our family protector and comfort when my girls needed it, and that one dog which possessed all the skills to make me a Trainer that I have become. I now fully understood that selection of a family dog, should start with understanding what the dog’s purpose would be, and which role will it have to play throughout its life. I understood that accepting a dog into your household, is like signing a contract for anything between 10-13 years (in some cases more), to which you cannot retreat, until this dog is no more.

Snowy made me to fully understand, that if human can understand this concept, that the relationship between the two will be fulfilled. She continuously showed me throughout her lifetime, that it not as human want it to be, but rather interpret it from a dog’s point-of-view. Never did I know, that this understanding would one day become the training approach and strategy of team K9 Intervention.

Snowy truly became a K9 INTERVENTION in my life. She made me understand why we are to be inspired by our dogs.