Bark . . Stop, Drop, & Roll™ - American Humane Launches Unprecedented Training to Law Enforcement in Tennessee

American Humane Association
Thursday, 13 February 2003

American Humane, a national expert on animal behavior and animal handling techniques, and the Tennessee Highway Patrol (THP) set a national precedent this week with the successful completion of the first animal temperament assessment training for law enforcement officers. The training, known as Bark...Stop, Drop, & Roll, came as a result of the much-publicized shooting of a family dog, Patton, by a Cookeville, Tenn., police officer during a routine traffic stop.

More than 100 THP supervisors gathered at the THP Training Center in Nashville on Wednesday, Feb. 12, for the first of two days of training by American Humane. By the end of this month, approximately 200 state supervisors will complete the course.

American Humane's training, the first of its kind in the country, provides officers with the tools they need to accurately assess a dog's temperament to diffuse or prevent attacks.

"The Tennessee Highway Patrol has set an incredible benchmark for the rest of this country's law enforcement to follow. They recognized a weak point in their training and proactively corrected the problem by becoming the first law enforcement agency to request this type of training. Captain Perry and everyone else at the THP deserve a great deal of credit for what they are doing," says Sharon O'Hara, American Humane's vice president of programs.

Even though 60% of American households own pets -- for a total of 60 million dogs -- until this week no law enforcement agency required officers to receive training on animal behavior and how to respond to situations in which animals are present. Furthermore, when American Humane animal behavior consultant Dr. Emily Weiss asked the roomful of officers to raise their hands if they had been bitten by a dog, almost every hand in the room went up. In fact, according to the US Center for Disease Control and Prevention, each year more than 4.7 million Americans are bitten by dogs, and 800,000 of these victims require medical attention.

In the animal world, body movements are the main form of communication. In the training, officers were taught to correctly judge an animal's aggression level by studying its ear posture, eye movement, mouth position, body posture and stiffness, body thumps and jumps, tail position, and lip and tongue movement.

"Most people incorrectly assume a wagging tail is an indication that an animal is friendly and means no harm. In fact, a wagging tail can actually be a sign of aggression. The worst bite I ever had was from a dog wagging its tail," says Dr. Weiss.

In the training, Dr. Weiss described three types of aggressive animals:

• Dominant aggressive animals are most likely to attack. They are characterized by ears pointed up, legs stiff and straight under the body, whites of eyes showing, low growling, and a stiff body and tail.
• Fear/defensive aggressive animals attack only if they are afraid and have no way to escape. They are characterized by squinting or bulging eyes, ears laid back, rear end low to the ground, and tail low and possibly tucked between the legs. They often are very noisy in an effort to scare away their threat.
• Prey aggressive animals are motivated by a desire to chase moving objects. They are characterized by ears set forward, tail above the spine and often wagging, high-pitched bark or whine, and back legs usually extended from the body.

All three types can be easily diffused and deterred from attacking by following American Humane's Bark... Stop, Drop, & Roll method. When an officer hears a bark, he or she should immediately stop forward movement. The officer should then immediately lower his or her eyes and assess the dog for evidence of aggressive posture. To dogs, a direct stare in the eyes signals a challenge. At the same time, the officer should take a sideways position, which is less threatening to animals. All these actions signal to the animal that the officer is not a threat and provide the officer time to get the situation under control.

"The training is difficult for some officers because it goes against the grain of everything they learn in the academy. Officers are taught to take control of situations by using a deep, loud voice and assuming a 'tall' posture and looking the subject in the eyes -- what is called a command presence. But to animals, these behaviors signal a threatening situation and may cause the animal to attack," says Kerri Burns, a consultant for American Humane and former police officer.

"In the animal kingdom, if an animal feels its life is in danger and there is no way to escape that danger, it will attack. It will bite," adds Dr. Weiss.

Law enforcement agencies wishing to know more about this training should contact American Humane.

For more information, or to contact American Humane Association, see their website at: www.americanhumane.org