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THE KENNEL — Ryker is a special dog that was chosen to train to be a service dog.
But being chosen as a service dog candidate is not what makes Ryker the German shepherd special.
What makes Ryker special is how spectacularly he failed every test given to him during his training. We’re not talking little whoopsie-daisies here — we’re talking hard core, pedal-to-the-metal type of failure.
Service dogs must go through rigorous training and testing to make sure their people are safe and cared for. According to the National Service Animal Registry, the list of desired behaviors includes “a relaxed attitude,” ability to walk in a “controlled manner,” and to “not become aggressive.”
None of these describe the Ryker you’ll see in the featured video.
The video is a montage of different training or test scenarios at Double H Canine Training Academy in Louisville, Kentucky. In every scene Ryker has either zero focus or way too much focus — there’s no middle ground for this pup.
For example, if there is a ball, Ryker completely loses his ability to focus on his training. Alternatively, when he does follow a command, his focus turns into pure, unadulterated destruction.
And the genius cherry on top of the video is that it’s set to Frank Sinatra’s classic song, “My Way” — a perfect theme song for Ryker.
Not many dogs are ultimately cut out to be service dogs, but that stops none of them from being that goodest boys and girls on the planet.
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