ER K-9 Training Services: History

History

     In the last quarter of the year 1993, Eugene Reyes came up with the idea of putting up a dog club here in Manila Philippines similar to what his brother Ed Reyes in Orlando Florida has (Ed Reyes K9 Training & Imports). He frequently visited him and always watched him train dogs for the police and the German Schutzhund dog sport. Eugene found it very interesting and started to learn from him the art of being a decoy for dogs. There were also dog training seminars conducted in Florida by respected German Trainers which he was able to be a part of. That gave him the opportunity to learn more about dog training. He also bought videotapes and books about dog training techniques by great trainers. He knew though that nothing could be better than actual hands on training.

     By early 1994, Eugene opened up a proctection dog training club right here in Manila, Philippines called ER K-9. There was not a single protection dog training club until then. He wanted to do something that no one had done in the Philippines: training the dog together with his master. For Eugene, the most efficient way of training a dog is to train with it. There were already obedience dog schools at that time, but you had to board your dogs with them and leave them for months. No one had the proper equipment back then to teach protection, so Eugene decided to start doing that. He wanted to produce dogs that can be used as a companion and a protector without losing its control. People over here mostly never knew that the dog could be used as a means of protection for homes. Most of the older trainers here wanted to have your dogs boarded, he wanted to do something different that was effective and could train both you and your dog. It all started slow, as the owners of the dogs were not used to this type of training approach. The first dogs were a pitbull and some local born showline Shepherds. At that time he did not have the right working Shepherds to train with. Most of our dog lovers never knew that there were show and working lines for dogs. He was able to start with some showline dogs, wihch he was able to convert and train to do protection work. Eugene just waited for the right time until he was invited to be the very first protection dog trainer to do a demonstration of his skills in one of the P.C.C.I. (Philippine Canine Club Inc.) dog shows. It turned out to be very successful and people started to be interested in owning personal protection dogs. Eugene continued to share his knowledge with everyone that showed interest. Today, there are many trainers because of the knowledge that he has given. This encouraged Eugene even further that he wanted to see protection dog training grow in the Philippines.

     From then on, he also brought in working Shepherds from Germany and the Czech Republic so as to produce hard working dogs, which showline dogs did not have. He also brought in Malinois, Tervurens, Dutch Shepherds and Beucerons, which he felt had the quality for work. By importing these new breeds into the country, he knows that in the future they will be able to produce their own line that will be suitable for the kind of work that they do. Eugene continued to attend seminars in the U.S., learning different training methods and also the different types of dog sports. He found it very interesting to learn and see the dogs perform, and to see how the decoys do their work. He also attended a week long seminar about the French Ring Training which was held California, USA. Eugene was invited by his friend Ms. Debbie Skinner, a well known breader of Beaucerons. The seminar was conducted by Mr. Michelle Valladon, a three time national decoy and judge of the French Ring sport. The thing that he did not like was the comparison of one dog sport to another. In his opinion, each and every dog sport has its advantages and its disadvantages. For new trainers he would suggest that they just leave these issues to themselves and just give credit to the creators of these dog sports. Without them, dog training would not have reached where it is right now.

     Those things Eugene has gained from learning about the different dogs sports he then combined into what is best suitable for the Philippines. Since he is into personal protection, he just picked out some sequences which he knew would be useful here in the country. Different places around the world have different problems so it would be for the best to train your dog according to your needs. Eugene also attended seminars about bomb detection training in the U.S., which helped him to understand scent work on dogs. This wil help him share his knowledge with Philippine Law Enforcement and related Government Agencies.

     After all the hard work and patience, ER K-9 has grown and is now the largest training school in the Philippines.