Part I. Rolo the
Best known to the dog show world as Obedience Trial Champion Scotswood Rolling Thunder UDX, ‘Rolo’ had another job outside of the obedience ring that earned him more admiration and respect for the breed than all his accomplishments in the AKC venue – as a mentor dog for guide dog puppies. Rolo maintained a high profile all his life; he was on TV several times and the subject of newspaper and magazine articles. In the dog press he was known for his brilliant, strutting obedience performances taking blue ribbons over the usual Goldens and Border Collies. In day-to-day life he was my partner in my work and became famous as ‘that pit bull that works with guide dogs’.
Rolo was rescued at five weeks of age, malnourished and full of parasites. He was a pathetic sight but even at that early age his character was obvious; confident, happy and gregarious he watched and learned quickly, blossoming into an outgoing but respectful young dog.
I strongly believe that puppies temperaments are heavily influenced by the adult dogs they interact with; I was very fortunate to have my old pit bull ‘Hershey’, (Obedience Trial Champion Scotswood Sun Bear) as an example for Rolo. Hershey adored people and was not at all dog aggressive. She had raised many litters, not of her own; she was a spayed rescue, but Border Collies that I bred at that time. Hershey nurtured the new addition and gave him lessons in doggy etiquette, essential for a pup taken away from his own mother so young. As Rolo grew, I took advantage of other adult female dogs owned by my circle of friends to teach Rolo manners. I picked bitches that were sociable, which would dominate, without being aggressive.
I encouraged Rolo to visit with other puppies briefly but supervised the interactions carefully – I didn’t want him learning to play roughly or having to defend himself. At my obedience classes I had Rolo meet many types of dogs in controlled situations and limited interactions with other adolescent males as he approached that difficult age; I didn’t want him practicing inappropriate behaviors. When Rolo was about 12 months old I brought home a litter of rescue pups and he doted on them. I think the experience of being around young puppies, while still developing themselves, is good socialization for dogs; the lack of this exposure explains why some dogs are confused and defensive around baby puppies. Interestingly, Rolo grew up to be nurturing with children as well as puppies; he toned down his rough and tumble games and let youngsters tow him around on a tug toy though he could easily yank it away (and frequently did at the end of the game!) With men and older dogs he could play hard but always maintained a clear mind and could be stopped in an instant. The control I had over him enabled me to teach him what was appropriate behavior and how much was too much. Later, this became intuitive and I never worried that he would become overly excited when playing stimulating games with dogs or people.
I have given this background on raising Rolo because so many pit bull owners have asked me about preventing dog aggression. I am fully aware that genetics and hormones play a huge part in the picture but appropriate socialization can make or break a youngster’s attitude. Over his lifetime Rolo was instrumental in helping me raise numerous puppies either purchased for work or rescued. I can honestly say not one of them became dog aggressive, including pit bulls, even some from proven ‘game’ lines.
All of the dogs have reached maturity and can be off leash around other dogs without worries; I’m sure neutering helped, but careful, supervised dog interaction through adolescence was a key factor. Dog parks were not part of that exposure!
I had used Rolo as a
‘distraction’ for pet dogs in my classes for several years when I was offered
the job of Puppy Raising Advisor for a large guide dog school. Rolo fell into his new role naturally. My territory covers parts of four western
states and Rolo was my constant traveling companion covering about 30,000 miles
a year. He became my right hand as I
evaluated puppy temperaments and offered advice to volunteer raisers. Part of the process is to ensure that the
future service dogs are comfortable around strange canines, which for many of
them means any breed other than a
Rolo proved to be ideal for socializing the puppies. His dark face and cropped ears were very different and some pups would initially be intimidated. We would never force the issue but gave Rolo the opportunity to work his magic. With reassuring body language he would gain the pup’s confidence until it was brave enough to approach him. Sometimes this would entail him laying down or even rolling on his back in a submissive gesture, other times he knew it was enough just to quietly present his rear end for the pup to sniff. Once the pup was reassured that it was just another dog, but in a brindle suit, it would work its way along his body to his head. Rolo knew at this point he had to be careful not to scare the pup so he would stand still with a low, gently wagging tail until the inquisitive nose got to his muzzle then that big tongue would come out to slurp the pup and make a new friend!
Many times I saw Rolo take matters into his own hands (or paws) as a nervous handler and puppy approached him; he would size up the situation and slowly move his body to a less threatening angle, he would stretch and yawn to give a calming signal and invariably make onlookers laugh at his performance, he might purposefully ignore the pup and snuggle up to the handler, tempting the pup to interact.
With average puppies that badly wanted to visit but had to learn to control themselves, Rolo would patiently wait with a relaxed posture until the handler had control. He would stand in one place while the exuberant puppy learned to stand calmly next to its raiser on a loose leash within inches of him. Then, on a release word, the dog and pup would visit and explore each other while I made sure the raiser understood what was appropriate interaction on the part of the puppy. If the pup got too rowdy and had to be corrected, Rolo would stand still and wait until things calmed down. Of course he loved the adolescent females and would flirt shamelessly, but always aware of the ‘rules of engagement’; he could be called away instantly or calmed down with a quiet ‘easy’ command.
The most challenging pups were the adolescent, intact males. Once again Rolo seemed to know just what to do. It may seem odd that he would get playful and mildly silly with some intact males but I believe it was his way of relaxing the other dog. One guide dog instructor said Rolo was the most ‘diffusive’ dog she had ever met and I think that is a good description of what he was doing in these situations, saying, ‘hey I’m no threat’ by being submissively playful. Some of the older, posturing males would put him on his guard; Rolo handled these dogs by posturing back just enough so that the other dog didn’t see him as a victim, but he ultimately remained calm and neutral. His whole attitude was one of ‘you aren’t worth my time’ - and it worked.
I have over a hundred puppies to supervise at any given time, aged from eight weeks to eighteen months and Rolo interacted with each one several times during its raising period. Additionally we attended guide dog open houses and fun days on the campus where Rolo was the official ‘meet and greet’ dog for hundreds of puppies in one day. His patience and love of both dogs and people was obvious to everyone and he changed the opinions of many people who arrived with breed stereotypes in mind.
Besides helping to socialize the puppies to other dogs, Rolo’s role included being a ‘mentor’ to puppies that, for one reason or another, needed a role model. Typically this would be a situation where the youngster lacked confidence, either in specific areas or generally. Once the pup had established a bond with Rolo, which didn’t take long given his sophisticated use of body language, we would place the pup next to Rolo’s shoulder where it could walk beside him and take cues from his behavior.
A good example of his mentoring role was with a poodle that came to live with me at thirteen weeks of age. This pup was to be part of a trial program to introduce poodles into guide work. ‘Eddie’ was nervous and easily overwhelmed out in public, so we proceeded very slowly with his socialization. His tendency was to walk faster and faster when unsure, eventually spinning himself into a panting tizzy. By placing him between Rolo and myself he calmed and, with a glance at the old man, slowed his frantic pace to match Rolo’s steady plod. Rolo was never scared of anything in his life and loved to be out and about; his demeanor rubbed off on Eddie and we were gradually able to wean the pup off his ‘crutch’. While mentoring Eddie we received many odd comments but were never denied access to businesses and stores once we explained the role of the older dog. Eddie became a steady, adaptable youngster and eventually mentored younger pups himself.
Even though Rolo didn’t get the extensive socialization a service dog puppy does when it is growing up, he was raised in a busy urban area and stayed in big hotels etc. when attending national level competitions. Consequently things like heavy traffic, elevators, open stairs and strange looking street people, all things that might upset a young pup, didn’t phase Rolo. The pups he chaperoned gained confidence from his confidence and always remembered him on future visits to the club, earning him the nickname of ‘Uncle Rolo’.
In seven years as my traveling companion and helpmate Rolo was an incredible ambassador for the breed; just taking him out of the van with the unmistakable logo on the side would invite comment. In no time Rolo would have another convert impressed with his dignified good humor and warm greetings; no, he wasn’t a guide dog but yes, he was very friendly and they could come and pet him. At meetings the kids would drag their parents over to meet Rolo and he became a favorite with everyone, from small children who practiced their training skills on him (he always humored them with eager responses to their commands) to burly sheriff’s deputies who had previously only known the nasty ‘backyard’ variety of the breed. He loved to run through his repertoire of tricks and was thrilled if I brought along a set of scent articles to give a demonstration. Above everything else Rolo was extremely sociable and basked in attention; the more folks around, the happier he was.
Part
II Rolo the Obedience Dog
When I first started training Rolo for competitive obedience trials I wasn’t sure he had enough drive for the job. I was advanced training an extremely intense Australian Cattle Dog at the time and Rolo was hard work in comparison; not because he was difficult to train but because he didn’t have a lot of energy and was a little too sensitive. He tried almost too hard and got upset when he got it wrong, even if getting it wrong just meant me withholding the praise and reward. There was no way I could do any type of corrective training with him; fortunately by then I had learned this was true of most of his breed and emphasized positive reinforcement for the ‘trick’ type training of competition obedience. He was corrected for infractions of manners, house behavior and ‘street obedience’, the stuff that makes a dog an acceptable member of society; competition obedience and everyday good behavior are two very different things in my book.
Rolo loved to interact and was very honest so I had hope that with patience and understanding he would work for me. We trained for very short periods and only when he was very ‘up’. I quickly recognized he was a ‘fair weather worker’, which meant we only trained outside when it was between about 60-70*! Fortunately we lived in the California Bay Area at the time.
Rolo dearly loved string cheese and would work hard for it and a variety of toys for about 10 minutes at a time. Some days he just didn’t feel like extending himself and watched while I worked other dogs and trained students. We’d run through a couple of tricks like ‘speak’ and ‘play dead’ to keep his attitude up then give him his dinner.
We made a huge breakthrough when
I had the behaviorist John Rogerson over from
This and other motivational
methods turned Rolo into a prancing, tail waving picture of enthusiasm in the
ring. He turned heads and invited
comment wherever we showed around the country and more than once had spectators
in tears of admiration. He consistently
beat the traditional obedience breeds, like Border Collies and Golden
Retrievers, with style. His usual score
was 199 out of 200 and he once even attained the elusive ‘perfect score’. A passing score is 170 and in many areas a
consistent 198 and above is needed to place.
We flew to
To earn an OTCh the dog must
first earn a Utility Dog title, the most difficult level of AKC obedience
trials. Then the dog can start to rack
up points based on the number of dogs beaten but only for first or second class
placements in the Open and Utility classes.
The dog must have a first place from each class and one other first, so
all second places wouldn’t cut it. By
the time Rolo and I were competing for OTCh points I had moved to
Rolo showed for the last time under the same judge he showed under his first time in the AKC ring. He won the class with a 199 and the judge and I were both in tears as she gave me the award. A former Doberman Drill Team founder she understood the prejudice we had had to overcome and the significance of Rolo’s accomplishments in the venue. She told me what an honor and a privilege it was to judge such a great dog on his retirement.
Part
III Rolo the Companion
Rolo was gentle with livestock and all the small pet mammals we had; he would soak rabbits and guinea pigs with kisses but let them play all around and underneath him. He was particularly fond of horses and would greet them like big dogs, much to their confusion. He tolerated friends’ and neighbors’ cats but was hell on feral ones. He hunted constantly on our hikes; much to the delight of the local farmers he kept a running tally of vermin, large and small. Large raccoons and nutria were no match for him. He was an obsessive swimmer and screamed with excitement on scenting a body of water. He would swim for hours, up and down or against the current in a river; I think swimming was his favorite activity.
Like many pit bulls Rolo was a discriminating watchdog and could be protective given cause – I always felt safe at home and on the road with him by my side. He was totally safe around all kinds of people but the few times I needed him to step up to the plate he did so with great seriousness. I had worked him out with a well-known decoy and the local K9 unit and he loved protection work but never lost his cool, always thinking before reacting. The local UPS driver and meter readers knew him by name and he greeted them with a deep bark then wagging tail when he saw who it was. He never forgot someone, recognizing people he particularly liked months after just one interaction.
I’ve never met a dog with such a memory. He knew our routes all over the west and would start screaming when we were within a few miles of a favorite river or when approaching the freeway turn off to friends’ homes. He simply adored children and would yodel going up the driveway to friends’ houses that had kids and have to be dragged away afterwards. I always felt a bit guilty for not giving him a child of his own!
Rolo was obviously intelligent but not exceptionally so; I’ve had other breeds that were ‘smarter’. What made Rolo so special was his intuition and drive to interact. He had an unusual ability to understand human speech; he was the only dog I’ve ever owned that could pick words out of normal conversation and often queued on my telephone conversations! His ability to read people and dogs and his thoughtful, quizzical manner gave him an almost human quality that made him so much more than a pet.
Rolo exemplified what the breed is about – an all round dog who can fill many roles. To the people who saw him in his work with the guide puppies he was noble and gentle, to spectators outside the ring he was intelligent and driven, to the those that knew him best he was an amazingly intuitive and reasoning dog with a great sense of responsibility and humor. To me he was that special friend and partner that happens along once in a lifetime.