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July 2016 Military Working Dog Team Support Association, Inc. Award Winning Monthly Newsletter MWDTSA KENNEL TALK Volume 8, Issue 7 Support MWDTSA now and you won’t miss any of the photos, stories, news, and highlights of 2016! Kennel Talk is an award winning MWD publication! Inside this issue: Marine Dogs Sniff 1 Regional Training 3 San Antonio Stroll 4 Wild & Wonderful Boxes 6 Donations & Support 8-9 Talk Like a Pirate & More 10 Paws For Reading 11 Training Day 12 Orlando, Fla., native Cpl. Suzette Clemans, a military working dog handler with 1st Law En- forcement Battalion, I Marine Expeditionary Force, and Denny, her Belgian malinois patrol ex- plosive detection dog, prepare to search for explosives on the beach aboard Marine Corps Base Memorials & Tributes 14-15 Camp Pendleton, California. USMC photo by Lance Cpl. Caitlin Bevel. Archive Photo 16 Marine Dog Teams Sniff Out Trouble MWDTSA touches the lives of dogs and people Story and photos by Lance Cpl. Caitlin Bevel near and far. This CAMP PENDLETON, Calif. - The roar of an en- phibious landings and search for simulated month our articles and gine, the breaking of waves against a bulk- explosives on a beach aboard Marine Corps photos take us from head, and the jarring shift from the rocking Base Camp Pendleton, California. Hawaii to California, sea to solid land could disorient any Marine, Texas, Missouri, Geor- but for military working dog handlers, keeping “The LCAC is basically a hover craft that goes their canine partners focused presents an over water and lands on the beach,” said Cpl. gia, Virginia, and from even greater challenge. Suzette Clemans, a military working dog han- West Virginia around the dler with 1st LEB. “It’s good training because world with our care To overcome this obstacle, Marines constantly the dog goes from being on a vessel to work- packages. train to improve proficiency with the weapons ing right onto the beach.” and equipment needed for their specific job Our archived photos are fields. For the Marine dog teams with 1st Law Amphibious landings often require Marines to Enforcement Battalion (LEB), I Marine Expedi- adjust quickly from waiting in the vehicle to from individual WWII tionary Force Headquarters Group, this in- the explosive activity of the mission on dry war dog records. cludes any and every vehicle that could be land. This becomes more complex when dogs used to transport them to where they are are involved. needed. “Some dogs can get nervous inside tight Subscribe to see where 1st LEB Marine working dog teams used Land- spaces, the waves might make them feel sick we connect next month! ing Craft Air Cushions (LCAC) to perform am- or uncomfortable, and getting on and off the Marine Dogs Sniff page 2 Page 2 MWDTSA KENNEL TALK Volume 8 Issue 7 July 2016 www.mwdtsa.org Marine Dogs Sniff continued from page 1 Left: Hebron, Ky., native, Sgt. Paul Johnson, a mili- tary working dog handler, and Rumor, his Labrador retriever specialized search dog, search for explo- sives on the beach aboard Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton, California. Right: Orlando, Fla., native Cpl. Suzette Clemans and Denny, her Belgian malinois patrol explosive detection dog, ride in a Landing Craft Air Cushion before searching for explosives on the beach. Above left: Marines and their military working dogs with 1st Law Enforcement Battalion, I Marine Expeditionary Force, board a Landing Craft Air Cushion. Exposing dog teams to working with different equipment and scenarios enhances their skills across a range of security threats in support of Marine Air Ground Task Force operations. Above right: Marines and their military working dogs explore the deck of a Landing Craft Air Cushion before searching for explosives on the beach. vessel can be stressful for them,” said “Anything you can expose a dog team to of roadways and vegetation where they Clemans, an Orlando native partnered with prepares them for future unknowns,” said gave positive responses to odors planted Denny, a Belgian Malinois patrol explosive Willingham. “What you don’t want is to at the scene. detection dog. have your dog in a bland situation all the time where they know exactly what’s go- “Being part of the military working dog The LCAC is large enough to hold multiple ing on and there’s nothing with shock program, you are part of a very special trucks or pieces of large equipment, but value or extra variables thrown in.” legacy,” said Willingham. “It doesn’t mat- passengers like the dog teams ride in a ter what branch of service you’re in, if compact room with only two small win- The dog teams train with everything from you’re K-9 then you’re K-9 and that’s dows. trucks to helicopters to make sure they something we take a lot of pride in.” are ready for whatever situations they “When you first get off of something like might face, said Willingham, a Tuscaloosa, Clemans said that she has been with that it’s up to you to get the dog settled,” Alabama, native who has been with the Denny for a year and a half, since she said Gunnery Sgt. Chris Willingham, the program for 15 years. joined the program, and it gives her confi- Kennel Master for 1st LEB. “It’s very im- dence to know he has her back. The dogs portant for handlers to understand their “You can’t plan for everything, but we al- and their handlers support the amphibious dog’s capabilities and limitations.” ways try to think outside the box to ex- and expeditionary nature of the Marine Air pose our dogs to different sights, sounds Ground Task Force by enhancing the secu- The LCAC is one of the few vessels where and smells,” said Willingham. “If we iden- rity environment. the dogs experience a change of terrain tify any issues, we want it to be during without being able to explore or see what training rather than combat.” “We are definitely ready,” said Clemans. is happening around them. They boarded “Any time, any place, you name it and the vessel in one area and came ashore Willingham said he could not be more we’re there.” somewhere completely different where proud. The handlers brought their part- they immediately searched for possible ners’ attention back to the mission imme- explosives. diately and conducted off leash searches Volume 8 Issue 7 July 2016 MWDTSA KENNEL TALK Page 3 www.mwdtsa.org Regional Training to Support Safer Big Events Photos and story by wander at my own pace, from activity to Linda Costa-Bryan, unless noted. activity. I watched the TSA dogs detecting drugs on airplane "passengers.” I watched In May I was invited to a training event the Search and Rescue dogs find put on by the TSA for local DOD, Law En- "cadavers.” I observed local law enforce- forcement, Search and Rescue and, of ment dogs chase down "suspects.” The course, TSA. Was I interested? Of course! best part of all was watching our own mili- tary dogs in action. They searched for When I arrived at the site, Aloha Stadium "bombs" in stadium seating, spent a lot of on Oahu, Hawaii, it appeared to be con- time searching for something around the trolled chaos. Trailers, vans, crates, dog empty beer stands, hunted for strangers equipment and people all over the place, hiding in a loading dock, and, my favorite, and, of course, lots of dogs. I immediately took down the bad guy with a lot of bark- started searching for my point of contact, ing and growling. The dogs were almost Chief Marc Jones, the Kennel Master at outdone by a dramatic bad guy screaming Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam. and yelling. Before I got very far, I was greeted by a Watching these dogs is amazing to group of Marines and their dogs. It must me. One minute they are ready to rip an have been my MWDTSA t-shirt that caught arm off, the next they are getting belly their eye. These young Marines could not rubs. I want to hug them all, but then thank me enough for all of the coffee we think about losing an arm and restrain have sent them and for the help we gave myself. one of their teammates last year with his Above: One of the teams waiting for dog. I had a great time watching one specific their turn to run a problem. dog. As a reward for a good job, he re- With my escorts, we soon located Chief ceived his KONG, which he immediately Jones. He immediately took me under his dropped into a bucket of water. Due to wing, introduced me to the heads of the the depth of the bucket, he was unable to various groups, and explained to me ex- retrieve his reward; his handler reached in By the end of the day I was exhausted but actly what was going on and where. I was and retrieved the KONG. The dog immedi- excited. I love watching "our" teams in also shown where the food and cold water ately tossed his KONG back in the bucket. action. It makes me want to do even were being hidden, just in case. It was again retrieved by the handler and more for them. Time to rest up! I hear back again. What a sense of humor this there is another training later this sum- During the course of the day, I was able to dog had. mer. I’m ready! Left: A team searches Left: An Air Force dog vending areas for hid- received a reward for a den weapons in a sta- job well done.

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