I tend to believe this a little more... [blockquote]Whatever system the agencies use for acquiring dogs- be they animals reared in-house, or purchased or donated puppies, or rescued dogs from shelters- the majority fail. A 50 percent flunk-out rate is the number just about all the agencies admit to. Trying th get accurate figures is difficult. Publishing failure rates in not good publicity, and even honest answers can be favorably colored. Questions are often answered with "It depends on how you count," which is fair enough and true. The fact is that no matter how you count, the percentage or dogs that graduate is not great.[/blockquote] I could go on, but the point is here. Later this book makes a similar statement to what Sarah said. I feel this is true for K9 dogs as well, having talked to people involved with training facilities.