I just watched special on TV about the Dog Brothers.  They are a loose knit organization, or to be correct a brotherhood of fighters.

When I first saw the previews for the show, I thought it was just another fight club for guys with too much testosterone trying to beat the bejezus out of each other to inflate their own egos.

Nothing could be further from the truth.  As a martial artist the show really inspired me.  Yes, they fight, and yes it is brutal and people get hurt.  

But, the objective isn’t to win a trophy, money or even to say you are the champ.

The objective of their fights is for each individual fighter to grow as a person.  To strengthen their own character.  And as seen by some of the new fighters to overcome their own demons.

One of the co creators of this brotherhood explains it as if a tribe was getting together and the males were fighting to strengthen each other in case they needed to protect their village or family.  

They originally started the dog brothers to test martial arts techniques against opponents who were really fighting you and trying to hurt you……………..like in the real world, instead of practicing with a partner that complies with your technique exactly as it is supposed to work.

They have a few events.   The first of course is no weapons, anything goes, hand to hand combat.   The next was sticks.  I must say this was really brutal, as all they had on were some hand and knee pads and flimsy fencing masks to protect the eyes from being taken out, one guy even got knocked in the head and collapsed for a moment.   The last event was shock knifes.   Really a cool idea, instead of plastic knives with paint on them, these knives delivered a nice shock when they get you.

None of the matches are scored, and no one gets a trophy, no one breaks for points.   They stop at the end of set time limit and if someone appears to be hurt or quits.

It’s important to realize that this isn’t simply a competition where the guys are out to win or hurt the other guy as much as they can.  It’s much different but just as brutal as UFC type match.

The one rule they have is that at the end of the match the guys walk away friends.

This is a gathering to strengthen and test men to their fullest.

I was really impressed that all the men that were fighting were there for the right reasons.  There were no scenes of guys throwing up their arms and cheering their own victory.   The point of the fight was not the fight itself, or to entertain people on pay per view.

I my opinion, this is should be part of the curriculum for any martial arts school, or studio that says that it trains people to fight. Or at the very least it should be avialable for people who take martials training for more than a way to pass the time and do something interesting.

I am truly envious as martial artist.   If I find the time and money I would like to go to one of the dog brothers gatherings.

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