Schutzhund evolved over 100 years ago in Germany to test the German Shepherd dog.    The sport is open to all breeds who have the correct temperament, drive and workability.   

All dogs must pass a temperament test in every trial.  Dogs that show unsteady nerves or unprovoked aggression will be excused from the trial.  Dogs who show to be under pressure or lack the desire to work with the handler will not be promoted in training or in trials.
All dogs must pass a BH test(obedience and sureness) before they can enter for Schutzhund/IGP titles.

The sport consists of 3 phases.  Tracking/Obedience/Protection

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Tracking

The dog must follow the path laid out by a tracklayer and find articles left by the tracklayer .  Depending on the difficulty of the title being attempted the track can run over 1000 paces and be over 3 hours old.  The working dogs natural ability to track and work is shown.

Obedience

In obedience the dog must follow commands and show his willingness to work.  The routine consists of heeling pattern, recall,  sit, down and stand in motion.  Retrieve and jumps, recall and long down.    In this phase the relationship of the handler and dog are very obvious.  A good team is amazing to watch.

Protection

Under the direction of the handler the dog must find the hidden helper.  (bad guy)  He must alert the handler by barking.  He must stop this person from fleeing or attacking and under direction of his handler must release and escort this(bad guy).