The need for military working dogs increased during Operation Iraqi Freedom and Operation Enduring Freedom when they were used to help located improvised explosive devices, according to apps.dtic.mil/dtic/tr/fulltext/u2/a547146.pdf. The armed forces had military working dogs in 1942, they were underutilized according to the site. By 1946, more than 10,000 dogs had been trained for duties including mine detection, messenger, and scout/patrol, though it is estimated that 9,300 of these dogs were trained for sentry duty.
Since then, the program has evolved into different K9 units throughout the military. These military working dog detachments perform duties such as drug and bomb detections.
"The military working dog detachment … we have all around the world," said Spc. Adrian Franqui, 523rd Military Working Dog Detachment, 97th Military Police Battalion. "As far as the Army, we have different types of dogs. We have patrol drug detector dogs or PDD. Obviously, drug dogs usually are into narcotics. Then we have our patrol explosive detector dogs. Those are …. things like dynamite (and) smokeless powder."
The dogs go through extensive training before they are trusted to deploy or even go on assignment. Their lives begin at Lackland Air Force Base in Texas, where they are bred and begin their own basic training.
"We have a puppy program down there that breeds dogs as well …. purchase dogs from overseas or local kennels," Franqui said. "They're given somewhat of a basic training where it's, 'here's odor, these are the things you want to be finding' whether it's a drug dog or an explosive dog. They also move into the patrol side of the house where they're teaching the dogs how to bite, teach the dogs how to find human odor and things like that. That training can go on for quite some time."
Dogs born at Lackland, Air Force Base, have a double letter in their name to help distinguished where they came from.
The two types of dogs that are trained for military working dog detachments are the German shephard and Belgian Malinois. These dogs are specifically chosen for their intelligence and their bite capability.
Their training will last for 1 1/2 to two years, when they will then go to an installation where the kennel master will pair them with a Solider based on their personalities and needs.
"I got put on a green dog, (that's) what we call them when they're fresh and they come here," Franqui said. "I was brand new to the installation and he was brand new as well."
For the next couple of weeks, both dog and handler undergo rapport time, which is solely for bonding.
"You treat your dog like you would at home, you treat her soft, you want her to trust you in every way," said Sgt. 1st Class Jorge Nunez, 523rd MWD Det., 97th MP Bn. "Then we go into a little more of an intense training which is where you apply the 'sit', 'down' and 'stay', which are commands."
The dogs then move on to odor recognition training. This is to teach the dog the odor it is searching for while also teaching the handler how their dog is going to respond to each odor. The odors are originally placed in cans, but once they are proficient at that, they are moved into a more realistic scenario, where the odor is placed in a building, an office or barracks.
This training is put in place to prepare the team to be certified for deployment and other duties.
"After a couple months, I will validate and make sure they understand what it takes to pass this certification," Nunez said. "It's more of an intense job because you don't know anything, where anything is hidden and you're actually being tested. Then it becomes a certified team."
Franqui's dog is a patrol drug detector dog who often assists him on military police duties.
"We work, we are also MP's, so we do the law enforcement parts," he said. "Our dogs can come out (with us) to a missing person, or someone fleeing a crime scene or someone just barricading themselves in their room. We get called into things like that so we can de-escalate the situation."
While the dogs have an important role in the day-to-day life of their handlers, they serve a greater role overseas, where the patrol explosive detector dogs are used more heavily.
"The drug dogs do get deployed as well but obviously ... they're down there for route clearance," Franqui said. "Searching a roadway, if you've got to get from point A to point B, they'll go ahead and search those roadways, those trails, to make sure they haven't (been laced) with [improvised explosive devices] and things like that."
"You have to make sure the dog knows the odor before you go outside to do what they tell us to do, in this case deployment," said Pfc. Carolina A. Cruz Oyola, 523rd MWD Det., 97th MP Bn. "You have to make sure your dog responds well because you're just guiding your dog, your dog is going to be the one to respond (to the odor)."
Cruz Oyola's dog, Bbannock, is a patrol explosive detector dog.
"If I'm going to deploy, it's because I know I can trust her," she said. "So I'm not afraid of that. Making a dog respond, it's not only saving you as a handler, it's saving the people behind you. Saving that life, you're saving families too."
Military Working dogs are recognized for their service every year on March 13, K9 Veterans Day, the same day the U.S. Army K9 Corps was founded in 1942.
According to www.puppyup.org, It's a chance to celebrate the four-legged heroes that serve the armed forces and keep troops safe, as well as remember all working dogs.
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