Military working dogs join TF Currahee

PAKTIKA PROVINCE — A typical work day may include a nice walk, a brush of the hair, some chow or just gnawing on a chew toy, but don't be fooled, AF Tech. Sgt. Bodro, Staff Sgt. Beny, and Navy Petty Officer 2nd Class Enyzi are in Afghanistan to work.

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TF Currahee’s newest team members are military working dogs. They're trained and certified to seek and find IEDs, bomb making material, narcotics and paraphernalia, and are qualified patrol or attack dogs. The canines arrived Jan. 13, and are scheduled to remain with TF Currahee until the end of 4th BCT’s rotation. “Our specialty is very useful, especially when you're on missions outside the wire,” said Navy Petty Officer 3rd Class Adam Molatore, a military working-dog handler and caretaker. Molatore is teamed with Enyzi, a Belgian Tervuren. “We find IEDs; that's my main mission here.” “There are certain things, like the dogs sense of smell, their sight, and their hearing. Everything about them is way more in tune,” said AF Staff Sgt. Patrick Spivey. “You might be out on a patrol, and to you it looks like a normal road; and then your dog ... it lets you know, hey there is something not right there. He said his dog’s senses are incredibly fine-tuned. “Their sense of smell is so good — for instance, a cheeseburger; we might only smell the cheese or the burger, but they smell the cheese, the pickle, the tomato and the lettuce,” said Spivey. “It's almost as if they smell it all in 3-D.” Not only do the dogs provide enhanced capabilities to find threats on the battlefield, they provide a morale boost wherever they're located. “When I'm walking by with my dog, the first thing people want to do is pet my dog,” said Spivey. “It reminds people of back home, of their pets and families. They're obviously not pets, but it kind of gives people a little more normalcy.” For the military working dog handlers and their canine partners, the preparation to deploy is an extensive process of training, and inspections designed to fully vet the dogs before they deploy. “The dogs go through a school, similar to basic training,” said Spivey. “Once they get their basic task accomplished, they come to us at the units, and that's kind of like their advanced individual training. Right now, my dog is like that new private who just got out of training, and I'm trying to teach him ‘this is how you really do it.’” At their home station, the handlers help ensure that the dogs are fully prepared for deployment. “By the time the dogs deploy they're all pretty solid at everything," said Molatore. The dogs provide a significant benefit to their units, but there are some challenges to accommodating them. “Logistically speaking, the dogs require some special attention, but their needs are not that much different from a regular Soldier,” said Sgt. Nicholas Kosierowski, a MWD handler and caretaker, teamed with Beny, a German Shepherd. “They need food ordered from supply, kennels built to house them and a vet or vet tech available for emergency care.” While on patrol, the dog handlers have to bring additional supplies for the dogs. “When we go out and we leave the wire, you're not just caring for yourself, but you're caring for the dog as well,” said Molatore. “So, where the normal Soldier would carry equipment for himself, we'd have to carry more for the dogs. We have to carry extra water, food for the dogs, an emergency kit for the dogs and gear for the dogs, such as goggles and boots, and rewards.” Overall, the benefits of having dogs with the units far outweigh the challenges they create. “I'm never alone, and when we go out, I trust my dog 100%,” said Molatore. “I will tread carefully, but I know that when I walk in her footsteps, I will be fine, because if something was there she would have found it already.” TF Currahee plans to add 2 kennel masters and 31 more dog/handler teams to the fight this spring.

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