Photo By Ashley Boster | U.S. Marine Corps Lance Cpl. Mason Avers, a military working dog handler, poses for a...... read more read more
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MARINE CORPS BASE QUANTICO, Va. – Lance Cpl. Mason Avers is a military working dog (MWD) handler at Marine Corps Base Quantico (MCBQ), Virginia. Avers calls Weatherford, Texas home, but moved around throughout his childhood due to both his father and his stepfather’s careers as Marines. Familiar with military life, Avers’ family adopted a retired Air Force MWD as his childhood pet in Okinawa, named Ponzu.
A career as a MWD handler was Avers’ dream job; he joined the Marines and worked hard in Military Police School where he was selected for the MWD handler program.
“My grandfather was a handler… my dad was CID (criminal investigation department), so it was something I wanted to do,” said Avers. “…and my love for dogs. I’ve had dogs ever since I was a kid.”
He has been a handler for three months and has been assigned to the MCBQ Provost Marshal Office, Security Battalion to work with MWD Fredy, a six-year-old German Shepherd, patrol and explosive detector dog.
“Every day he’s excited to see me. There’s not a day where I go in the kennels and he’s not hopping on me the first time I see him. He’s always excited to work,” said Avers.
Handlers and MWDs work hard to build relationships in a short amount of time. It takes 60 days to become a certified and validated dog team. This includes scouts, patrol, obedience, detection and gunfire validation.
During this time, the team will be reviewed by the kennel master and chief trainer. Lastly, the provost marshal will observe the handler and MWD as they work a detection problem. Passing the final review will certify the dog team.
“Teams are made by the handlers and the dog,” said Avers. “We work together – that’s the whole point. It’s not just one. He can’t do his job without me, I can’t do my job without him, so it’s a working team.”
Avers has a passion for working with dogs and he understands the hard work, dedication, and patience it takes to grow his relationship with Fredy.
“The most rewarding part about my job is working with the dog and seeing the progression that you can make, you know every dog is different, working with different personalities and just bringing their true potential out of them,” said Avers. “What you put into the dog, is what you are going to get out.”
| Date Taken: | 06.23.2021 |
| Date Posted: | 06.23.2021 15:49 |
| Story ID: | 399563 |
| Location: | QUANTICO, VIRGINIA, US |
| Hometown: | WEATHERFORD, TEXAS, US |
| Web Views: | 108 |
| Downloads: | 2 |
This work, Marines of the Crossroads: Lance Cpl. Mason Avers, MWD handler, by Ashley Boster, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
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