K9 Training Center

  Utilitarian:

1. Designed to be useful rather than luxurious or decorative.
2. Based on or supporting the belief that actions are good if they are useful or benefit the greatest number of people

As the name suggests this is a certificate that is based on a wide scale of protection that does not only cover personal protection. Something more as a dog beneficiary to a wide range of people.

The UPD is a wide coverage Certificate that covers areas that are very much different to one another. Many people rightly choose a single line that runs in the UPD Certification Standard. This means that dogs must be carefully selected for this type of training. The dogs must have a high prey drive for protection work but they also must be highly social or more correctly put trustworthy for training of Search and Rescue. The dogs therefore must have very balanced and stable nerves. Health and anatomy is also vastly important due to excessive agility requirements. Selected dogs must also be willing to work and at the same time to be willing to work with people. An intelligent dog with a high focus is vital.

UPD Certified Dogs are true examples of trained dogs they are highly adaptable and will work out for themselves what is required of them in ever changing scenarios. UPD Certified Dogs simply break the rules of such of that a Protection Dog requires extreme prey drive or Search and Rescue Dogs must have no prey drive..
The UPD Certificate is as you have already understood a hard to reach certificate that requires the best of the best of both dog and handler.
The UPD certificate is open to all breeds that have the necessary potential. The UPD Certificate program was initially developed for the German Shepherd Dog breed.

The UDP Certificate is a four stage program. Minor, Junior, Master, and the UPD title.
The UPD title is valid for one year and requires simple annual re-testing for proof of title worthiness. Any dog that has kept its UPD title for three years is known as a Veteran UPD.
The testing process for the UPD title.
Each stage consists of: Obedience, Agility, SAR, General Protection, Nose-work etc.
Candidates are first screened. Successful dogs are accepted as Minor UPD MinUPD.
On successfully completing the Minor stage candidates are accepted as junior candidates, then Master and at last Senior and are awarded with the UPD title. During each stage the candidates work for points for each section of required training. Different tests required have different

minimum age requirements. Any candidate at or above the age boundary can enter the specific test. Each test requires to be taken at different times and allocations. The average is used as the initial score. Candidates must pass all phases to be accepted for the stage test. Each stage ends with a stage test and candidates that pass earn their new title. Stage final tests differ and are randomly prepared by the judging committee. Each handler is told the test goals on the final test day. Tests can be composed on any combination of tests required and already passed.

Minor UPD (Mn-UPD):
All candidates that have been screened and passed with UPD acceptable or UPD recommended.
Minimum age for final test: 6 months.
Tests include FGO, Agility 1a, Basic protection, basic area search and basic tracking.

Junior UPD (J-UPD):
All candidates that have achieved required minimal score and have successfully passed the Minor UPD stage test.
Minimal age for final test: 12 months.
Tests include: OB-1, Agility 1b, General Protection Level 1,SAR-A Level 1 Nose Work .

Master UPD (M-UPD):
All candidates that have achieved at least the minimal score and have successfully completed the Junior UDP stage test.
Minimal age for final stage test: 18 months.
Tests included OB-2 and, Agility 2, General Protection Level 2, SAR B, and Level 2 Nose Work.

The UDP Title:
Is given to dogs on successfully completing tests including Protection Level 3 and Obedience level 3.

UPD Veteran (UPDV)
Is a title given to dogs that have re-entered tests UDP title tests or competitions for 2 consecutive years and successfully completed.

 

UP + D ( UPPD ):Utilitarian Protection Plus Dog:
This is a title program the same as the UPD title but has more coverage and most programs included finalize at the plus stage. Eg. FGO-Plus, OB3-Plus, Proteciton3-plus, Agility3-Plus.
A very important part of the Plus version is that it is only open to club members, all training is performed as much as possible by the handlers themselves.
UPPD Club

 

BUPD:Basic Utilitarian Protection Dog:
The same as the UPD Program but doesn't include tracking or SAR.

 

UP + D vs. K-9
K-9 is a training program for working dogs The program is used mainly by the police or military. A high training is used and a difficult test is required. Succesful candidates receive the K-9 title. The UPPD title is given to dogs that have been vastly trained and proven themselves throughout a complex and difficult training program. K-9 dogs are trained for narcotics. UPPD titled dogs have no narcotic training but have received higher levels of training and have been trained for a much wider scale. K-9 titled dogs have to complete different extra programs to achieve the UPPD title. On the other hand UPPD titled dogs only require a short Narcotic training program to easily achieve the K-9 title.

Dogs chosen for both K-9 and UPD training require the same drives but the UPD candidates must also be highly social aswell.