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| Home Front: Tech |
| War Dogs Against Terror |
| 2005-07-13 |
| July 13, 2005: The war on terror has brought back military dogs in a big way. Nearly two thousand are in service with American troops. The uses are many, and include patrolling, narcotics and explosives (and land mine) search. For most dogs, it takes nearly a year, and some $60,000, to train them to perform useful military skills. The U.S. Army just issued a new Field Manual on âmilitary working dogs.â Several hundred military dogs are currently used in combat zones, mainly Iraq. âWar Dogsâ are an ancient military practice. But for thousands of years, the dogs were used mainly for helping guard the camp, and for helping out in combat. But in the last century, as warfare changed, so did the use of dogs. They were used to carry messages during World War I, but by World War II were also trained for patrolling, delivering messages in combat, detecting mines and crowd control. Most were still used for guard duty. During World War II, some 10,425 dogs were taken into U.S. military service, with another 1.500 mobilized for the Korean war and, in the Vietnam war, some 4,000 dogs were trained. In Vietnam 281 were killed in combat. The marines used 327 dogs in the Pacific during World War II, and 29 died in battle. The troops in the Pacific, both during World War II and Vietnam, found the dogs particularly useful for detecting enemy ambushes during patrols. The dogs could detect enemy troops up to a thousand meters away. In Iraq, the dogs are very useful for guarding bases, guarding prisoners, finding bombs and hidden enemy troops. In Iraq, a seven pound âflak jacketâ was developed for dogs used in dangerous situations. Costing about a thousand dollars each, the Kevlar protective vests protect the dogs from stab wounds, shell fragments and some bullets. The K-9 Protective Vests weigh about seven pounds, which for a 90 pound German Shepard, is about the same burden as the 17 pound vest worn by the heavier marines. The K-9 vests have some special features as well. There are compartments on the inside of the vests for the insertion of cold packs (soft, flat plastic bags containing a chemical that, when activated, becomes very cool). Since dogs do not deal with heat as effectively as humans (dogs donât sweat), and Iraq is a very warm place in the Summer, the cold packs can prevent heat stroke. There are also attachments on the vest to enable the dog to be dropped by parachute, or hauled up via a rope. The vests hinder the dogs mobility a bit, especially when they are jumping. But the dogs have quickly adjusted to the vests. After World War II, until 2000, when the law was changed, military dogs were used until they were about ten years old, then killed. It was thought that the retired military dogs could not adapt to family life. But decades of police, and some military experience, with dogs living safely with their handlers and family members finally caused the policy to be changed. Dog handlers had long urged that retired dogs be allowed to stay with their handlers, or be put up for adoption. |
| Posted by:Steve |
| #16 I have a 8yr old female doberman, total princess. Wouldn't hurt a fly. My son can climb on her, pull her ears, whatever. I keep him in check of course, but I think Sadie thinks she's his mom. Love that dog, man. Go running, play fetch, whatever, great temperment and highly obedient. |
| Posted by: Jarhead 2005-07-13 22:46 |
| #15 Well, I reckon our Rhodesian Ridgeback x GS would probably jump with me, but only if I jumped first, holding his lead. Best thing about him is he only barks when he knows there's going to be a problem, (or, if he don't like you). Of course, the other one, a Springer Spaniel, post-training, could come with for sniffing duties. She seems to have a fondess for sniffing out ass-holes, so should be on big money in these times. |
| Posted by: rhodesiafever 2005-07-13 18:29 |
| #14 Jackal - Yeah - I love 'em, but you're right about the heat. I had mine when I lived in the Mountain states. Awesome, smarter than hell, and sweet as they come. Protective without being obnoxious. Just great dogs / buddies. Down here, no way... it's 113 F right now in Sin City. I miss having critters around - been on the move for over 12 yrs, now and apartments just don't cut it. Of course, ferrets are a scream and would work out fine in an apartment, lol. Hmmm. I had one, a male, waay back. The little shit stole all the socks and wash cloths he could find - raided the clothes hamper - and stashed 'em. If there had been a female, she would've made a nest by shredding the lot. His job was to just collect the stuff, lol! Me & the Ex would go a-hunting when we ran out of small cloth items, he had 3 places he seemed to like, heh. Pissed the cat off and scared the hell out of a big ol' Airedale we had, lol! The ferret chased that dog all over the back yard. Weighed about 8 or 9 ozs. Dog 50+ lbs. Hmmm. |
| Posted by: .com 2005-07-13 16:55 |
| #13 .com: You had a Sammy? I have 'moose: The problem is that I really love the Samoyed breed and don't want any other. But Siberian sled dogs do not do well in the heat. Cami basically stays indoors except the early morning. |
| Posted by: Jackal 2005-07-13 16:31 |
| #12 What would a dawg paratroop think on the way down? Easy, if it's a goldie it thinking, "Damn tricked by the olde fetch skam" |
| Posted by: Shipman 2005-07-13 15:41 |
| #11 Cry "Havoc!" and let slip the dogs of war! |
| Posted by: Mike 2005-07-13 11:53 |
| #10 jackal: special breeds are being evolved that have a greater resistance to heat. Australia has its dingos and the US has a pit bull-German shephard cross that is a superior survivor (so popular in the west that there is now an entire shelter just for this cross breed). Optimally, the dog should be able to survive and perform its mission for several days with minimal care. From personal experience, I know that the PB-GS cross does very well in Arizona. |
| Posted by: Anonymoose 2005-07-13 11:48 |
| #9 The best part: Muslims think dogs are evil |
| Posted by: Dreadnought 2005-07-13 11:45 |
| #8 Bow Wow Thisin here is a genuine psyops critter |
| Posted by: perro rojo 2005-07-13 11:13 |
| #7 Thisin here is a genuine canine psyops critter |
| Posted by: perro rojo 2005-07-13 11:09 |
| #6 Jackal - agree. Who wants to get rich quick? That's a GREAT idea. |
| Posted by: 2b 2005-07-13 10:47 |
| #5 You can talk a dog into doing most anything. Cats just look at you like you're nuts. |
| Posted by: Steve 2005-07-13 10:41 |
| #4 This reminds me of an episode I had with a 70 lb Samoyed I had waay back. Sweet as sugar, he took a chunk out of me one night when I had the misfortune of trying to manhandle his lard ass through the door when a bolt of lightening hit a tree about 200 yds away but in perfect view from the doorway. I was near-blinded and definitely deafened - and he was freakin' quicksilver! Never knew he could move that fast, lol! Thought about renaming him Lightening or Lickety Split, heh. I don't think I'd wanna be a Canine Jumpmaster, lol! |
| Posted by: .com 2005-07-13 10:41 |
| #3 Hurray for canines! I am glad that they don't automatically kill them at age 10 any more. I adopted Katrina when she was 10. She only lasted 3 more years, but those were good years. I wonder if I can get some surplus cold packs? They would be useful here in Arizona (yesterday's high = 110). |
| Posted by: Jackal 2005-07-13 10:39 |
| #2 Um, terror? Lol! |
| Posted by: .com 2005-07-13 10:30 |
| #1 There are also attachments on the vest to enable the dog to be dropped by parachute Heh. Wouldn't you love to know what's going through the mind of a canine paratrooper? |
| Posted by: Robert Crawford 2005-07-13 10:22 |
