Yuma Proving Ground, Ariz., can get to 115 F in the summer and can get down to 13 F in the winter. Most people don’t care that the military uses this huge piece of otherwise desolate land for testing munitions or vehicles ...but one thing you don’t hear about that happens at YPG and another hot, dry installation, 29 Palms Marine Corps Base, Calif., is the military working dog training and veterinary support.
A mock town dubbed “K9 Village” was built at YPG complete with mud-brick houses, shops and IEDs. The idea is to mimic the deployed environment to ensure more realistic training. Dog teams go to YPG for 2-4 weeks of pre-deployment training.
However, one thing initially missing from the plan was veterinary care. The YPG veterinary section is small with one Veterinary Corps officer and three animal care specialists. This section also is responsible for the food protection and animal care missions not only at the Army proving ground but also the Marine Corps Air Station close to Yuma.
The veterinary staff provides first-aid instruction to dog handlers during the training. This three-day training covers preventing, recognizing and treating heat injuries; treating wounds; placing IVs and giving fluids; snake and arthropod bites/stings; and general dog maintenance. The last day is centered around a hands-on evaluation of the handlers, wearing all their gear and body armor, performing care on dog mannequins.
The importance of this veterinary training was demonstrated during one summer training exercise. A working dog collapsed with heat exhaustion. His body temperature was 110 F. The vet staff immediately took control, starting IVs and cooling and then contacted the Marines at the air station to coordinate a medical evacuation of the dog to San Diego where more definitive care could be delivered. Everybody worked together and in the end the dog made it.
At 29 Palms, the Marines conduct a four-week field training exercise which includes dog teams that must participate and certify prior to deploying with their battalions. Generally, 13-26 dogs go with each battalion, but 29 Palms also is the place the III Marine Expeditionary Force has their large dog platoon kennel housing about 40 dogs, so the work at 29 Palms can be consistently busy. Like YPG, the veterinary section is small with one officer and only one animal care specialist. This unit also has the civilian pet mission and the veterinary officer is responsible for food protection duties.
The veterinarians at these duty sites are frequently brand new graduates and brand new officers so they have to learn fast. Their technicians are usually in a similar boat, not having more than one or two other assignments before YPG or 29 Palms and sometimes it is their first duty site as well.
These sites and their unique contributions to the military working dog program are yet another little known, but important part of the new Public Health Command.
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