Military Working Dogs

Military Police, May, 2001 by Timothy G. Dawson, Eugene A. Jr. Marchand, James F. Teatom

The Lackland Training Detachment (LTD), 701st MP Battalion, is located at Lackland Air Force Base (AFB), San Antonio, Texas. Because of our location, many individuals do not know we exist or what our mission is. Our mission has a broad impact on the Military Police Corps, the U.S. Army, and other military services. In this Joint service environment, we assist in the training of all military working-dog (MWD) handlers, MWDs, and traffic-accident investigators deployed worldwide.

Our History

The title of the unit has changed many times since World War II. Initially, command and control was under the Quartermaster Corps in Front Royale, Virginia, and the Infantry at Fort Carson, Colorado. The Army Dog Training Center at Fort Carson was largely used during 1954 to 1957 to train MWDs for the U.S. Air Force. In 1957, this center was deactivated and the responsibility for training was transferred to the Air Force. The Sentry Dog Training Branch was established at Lackland AFB in 1958.

An Army detachment was transferred to Lackland AFB from Fort Carson. The unit was comprised of six dog-handler instructors, one NCOIC, and one clerk. The unit has participated in training thousands of MWDs and handlers in both war and peacetime. During the Vietnam War, the Army trained scout dogs, combat tracker dogs, mine dogs, tunnel dog teams, and marijuana-detector dog teams at Fort Gordon, Georgia.

In June 1973, the interservice training review executive committee made the decision to transfer the MWD Training Program to the U.S. Air Force. In October 1973, the last marijuana-detector dog class graduated from the U.S. Army Military Police School (USAMPS), Fort Gordon. In January 1974, all training and handler instruction was transferred to Lackland AFB.

On 2 October 1974, the USAMPS Training Liaison Detachment was established at Lackland AFB. On 10 November 1982, the detachment was redesignated as LTD, USAMPS, 701st Military Police Battalion assigned to Fort McClellan, Alabama, attached to Fort Sam Houston, Texas, with duty at Lackland AFB. Along with the MWD, LTD, the 701st MP Battalion also instructs students at traffic-management and accident-investigation course and provides administrative support for the U.S. Army Signal Corps Electronic Principles School. They also have a dog-training section (DTS) responsible for the training of explosive detector dogs (EDDs) and patrol dogs that are deployed worldwide.

Dog-Training Section

The DTS is a multiservice section comprised of 70 personnel. Of these, 18 are Army MP that are OPCON to the 341st Training Squadron. The DTS trains all dual-certified patrol/EDDs for the four branches of military services. On average, DTS produces 200 EDDs annually.

EDDs are trained and certified to detect, at or above 95 percent accuracy rate, on nine different explosive odors in many different areas such as offices, barracks, theaters, warehouses, luggage, and vehicles.

After the MWD is trained in explosive detection, it is then trained in patrol. Patrol training consists of obedience, an obedience course, out and guard, building search, and scouting.

Out and guard is a new technique of training at Lackland AFB. This technique has been in use by many other countries and law-enforcement committees. It incorporates false run, false run into a bite, search and reattack, escort, and stand off. For years, we have trained our MWDs to attack a suspect and return to the handler on command. Now, we train them to attack and stay in front of the suspect and watch the person until the handler has detained the suspect.

All phases of patrol training have uses in both combat support and law enforcement. If a building has been found unsecured, an MWD team can clear it better and faster than an MP team. In a combat-support role, an MWD team can assist an infantry platoon to clear a building in an urban combat situation. Only the amount and type of training the MWD has received will limit its use.

Military Working-Dog Handler's Course

The 341st Training Squadron also operates the MWD Handler's Course. Instructors that teach the course are from the four branches of service, and the Army has seven instructor positions. All instructors must have an associate's to instruct at the handler's course. College credit is awarded for this course through the Community College of the Air Force. The students are trained in two separate blocks of instruction. Students in Block One are taught all aspects of patrol training and handling of an MWD. In Block Two, students are trained to handle and train an MWD in detection.

The first five days of Block One are classroom instruction. Students learn how to maintain the equipment they will be using to train the MWD, safety procedures, kennel maintenance, health and first aid, principles of conditioning, and how to maintain records and reports.

At this point, the student is assigned the dog he will be training and working. In 1988, the handler's course stopped training MWDs and only taught students how to handle a dog. All MWDs were trained by the DTS. In 1996, in an effort to produce a well-rounded dog handler, the handler's course began training all patrol/narcotic detector dogs (NDDs) for the field. Students under strict guidance and supervision of the instructors train the dogs. Approximately 30 to 40 percent of each class has the opportunity to train a dog.