Sessions

Successful police dog work requires a good working relationship between the dog and handler. Previous studies have examined several handler-related characteristics, while dog sex and handler–dog sex combinations have received less attention. The study was conducted in September 2025 at the Dunakeszi training site of the Police Education and Training Centre in Hungary. We directly observed 20 police service dog–handler dyads during four tasks (on-leash walking, basic obedience, recall and retrieving) and supplemented the field observations with video analysis of every dyad. Communication and performance indicators were analysed by handler sex, dog sex, and their combination. Most measures showed no consistent difference. However, selected recall and retrieving measures produced results (p < 0.05) that suggest the role of handler–dog sex combinations may deserve further study. Because the groups were small and uneven, these findings need confirmation in a larger sample. Still, the study adds observations from real police service dog work in Hungary and may serve as a starting point for future research on the selection and training of service dog dyads.