Photo By Dan Grubb | Pfc Cierra Ritter, a military dog handler, joins Dennis in decontamination training...... read more read more
FORT BRAGG, NC - As troops exposed to chemical gas make their way through the woods and back to camp, Dennis maintains his composure and joins his fellow soldiers back to safety, where he—and his comrades -- will be decontaminated from the elements and his mission can resume.
Dennis is a military dog and while his specialty is drug detection and seizure, he too must attend training just like any other Soldier when it comes to precautions during battle. He was part of Military Dog Week on Fort Bragg which integrates soldiers who are veterinarians and dog handlers so that they gain competence and confidence in training their kennels on K9 tactical combat casualty care and decontamination.
“The veterinarians are receiving training to know what chemical, biological, radiological, and nuclear decontamination looks like for military working dogs,” said Capt. Alexandria Brown, the lead planner for Military Working Dog Week which hosts military veterinarians from across the U.S. “For new veterinarians, they’re curious as to what that looks like. They are getting training so they can better advise their future kennels and can implement training later that will help other vets as well.”
The training is part of the First Year Graduate Veterinary Education Program which is an internship for brand new Veterinary Corp Officers. They practice decontamination, medical triage, how to properly wear personal protective equipment and responding to chemical agents.
“Canines are used in the Army, Navy, Air Force, Space Force, and Marine Corps as explosive detectors, drug detectors, and an element of installation security,” said Col. Stephanie Mont, Womack Army Medical Center commander who also happens to be a veterinarian. Mont spent more than two decades in a variety of positions as a Veterinary Corps Officer. This included service as the Officer in Charge of a Veterinary Treatment Facility at Fort Irwin and in South Korea as well as being deployed in support of Marine Corps forces in Western Iraq and joint forces out of Kuwait. “Some dogs are trained in more specialized search and detection tasks. Whether deployed or in garrison environments, dogs play a key role in keeping Service Members and their Families safe,” she added.
Mont’s assessment is not lost on history. During World War II, more than 20,000 dogs served in the U.S. Army under a program established in 1942 called ‘Dogs for Defense’. Their duties included search and rescue, tracking, explosive detection, patrol work, detecting narcotics and tracking down adversaries. Some dogs jumped from planes to bring supplies and help soldiers get to safety. Often, they were utilized to exchange messages, food and ammunition.
“Many times, working dogs are used by military police, the Secret Service or the FBI,” said Lt. Col. Kimi Damassia-Rhoades, Commander of Veterinary Readiness Activity on Fort Bragg who pointed out that they are heavily used at high profile functions to detect bombs. “Veterinary school teaches our vet corps officers that come into the military about the dogs. When they begin, they are not working dogs. It’s important to remember that they are not pets, they are actually on a mission, and they're trained differently to do a task that is very specific to that working dog, whether it's drugs or explosives,” she added.
Military Working Dogs typically retire after about ten to twelve years due to age or health issues. Most retired dogs find a permanent home with their handlers, but they can also be adopted by law enforcement personnel or civilians. For more info about military dogs and their training, check out https://www.defense.gov/Multimedia/Experience/Four-Legged-Fighters/
| Date Taken: | 03.07.2025 |
| Date Posted: | 03.07.2025 10:06 |
| Story ID: | 492244 |
| Location: | FORT BRAGG, NORTH CAROLINA, US |
| Hometown: | FORT LIBERTY, NORTH CAROLINA, US |
| Web Views: | 149 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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