K-9 Honors

Military Working Dog Teams

National Monument

San Antonio, Texas

On this Memorial Day 2019, I want to honor not only those who bravely serve the United States but K-9 dogs who bravely train to go into battle as well. 

Military Working Dogs (MWD) are trained in a unique manner - far from basic behavioral training as a pet and even service training for individuals in need.  Military Working Dogs are, as service dogs, deemed to be "a non-lethal option for neutralizing a threat." (Go Army)

Typical tasks a Working Dog is trained for include -
- Patrol Drug Detector
- Patrol Explosive Detector
- Health and Welfare Searches
- Law and Order Operations
- VIP Support
- Customs Support

Handlers go through 17 weeks of advanced training to work with an MWD.  Full details can be found here.

The history of dogs for military purposes dates to B.C. eras.  In the United States, dogs for military purposes date to the Seminole Wars and the Civil War.  Hounds were used to "protect, send messages, and guard prisoners." (Wikipedia)

Sergeant Stubby, a Bull Terrier or Boston Terrier, was the most decorated war dog in World War I.  He learned to warn of poison gas attacks, locate wounded soldiers in no man's land, and when to duck for cover. (Wikipedia)

Chips, a German Shepherd-Collie-Siberian Husky mix, was the most decorated war dog in World War II - receiving the Distinguished Service Cross, Silver Star, and Purple Heart. (Wikipedia)

Roughly 5,000 U.S. war dogs served in the Vietnam War. (Wikipedia)

In 2011, the United States Navy SEALs sent Cairo, a Belgian Malinois, into Operation Neptune Spear, where Osama bin Laden was killed. (Wikipedia)

The use of dogs in warfare is not limited to United States assumption.  Allies and opposing countries also have a history with using dogs in warfare.  A full list can be found on Wikipedia.

Example photos of Military Working Dogs -

MWD wearing body armor

Escalation of force training

Afghanistan

K-9 Unit training

U.S. Naval Security

German Shepherd MWD

Wearing body armor

Clears a building in Afghanistan

Navy Master-at-arms

Firing blank ammunition

Condition the dog to sound

U.S. Navy handler with MWD

National War Dog Cemetery

Naval Base Guam