Fort Leavenworth Kennels Remembering Nnorman 16 Story and Photos by Jerri Merklinger
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October, 2016 Military Working Dog Team Support Association, Inc. Award Winning Monthly Newsletter MWDTSA KENNEL TALK Volume 8, Issue 10 Thanks to the Fort Leaven- Support MWDTSA now worth Kennel for such an and you won’t miss any of amazing demonstration with the photos, stories, news, a special thanks to the Kennel Master Thompson and and highlights of 2016! Trainer, SSG Pate. MWDTSA was welcomed with open arms and an amazing day of Kennel Talk is an award dog demonstrations. winning MWD publication! During our demo, one of the scenarios was of a vehicle extraction and then a build- ing search. The vehicle was Inside this issue: stopped and an uncoopera- tive driver was taken down, Fort Leavenworth Demo however, his accomplice es- 1 caped into a nearby building Pirates Pack and a dog team is directed 4 into a dark and dangerous place on the heels of a Bravo K9s 6 wanted suspect. Donors and Needs 8 Send in the dog team! Treasure Chests Arrive 10 Right: Decoy SSG Berber and John Douangdara Park MWD Mmace being handled 12 by SPC Deatherage. LA Fleet Week K9s 12 Photo by D. Whitman Ellsworth AFB Visit 13 Veterinary Corps’ 100th 14 A Letter to Lord 15 Fort Leavenworth Kennels Remembering Nnorman 16 Story and photos by Jerri Merklinger The Fort Leavenworth kennel near Kansas while they were deployed. It was a great op- MWDTSA touches the lives City, Kansas is where five of our MWDTSA portunity to put faces to names. of dogs and people near volunteers met up for a base visit. Fort and far. This month our Leavenworth’s history is long and legendary. The handlers and their hard-working dogs articles and photos take us It was established by Henry Leavenworth on were ready to showcase the talent and tenac- to the great plains of Kan- the banks of the Missouri River on May 8, ity of the K9s in a stellar demonstration. Since sas, Nebraska, and South 1827. It was the first settlement in the Kansas most of the volunteers who attended the Dakota We span the U.S. territory and is the oldest active Army post event had been to several base visits previ- from coast to coast: Cali- west of the Mississippi River. In 1866, four ously, the handlers and K9s presented more fornia to Texas to Georgia. African-American regiments were formed at involved demonstrations than are normally We stop for a visit in Hon- Fort Leavenworth under the command of Colo- done with a kennel visit. duras and our care pack- nel Benjamin H. Grierson. As the soldiers ven- ages make it around the tured westward they encountered the Kiowa We witnessed what happens when handlers world from Michigan to Indians, who dubbed the regiments “Buffalo are on patrol and have to apprehend multiple nooks and crannies wher- Soldiers.” A Buffalo Soldier Monument was people. In that demonstration, the handler, ever our teams are de- dedicated here in 1992 by Gen. Colin Powell. SPC Deatherage, and his K9, Mmace, were in ployed. a marked car following a suspicious truck. SPC Today, Fort Leavenworth is widely known for Deatherage observed illegal behaviors and Our parting shot is from housing the U.S. military’s only maximum- stopped the vehicle. The driver became bellig- Naval Base Kitsap in security prison. But our volunteers were there erent and uncooperative, so SPC Deatherage Washington. to tour the Army’s MWD kennels. Two of the commanded Mmace to apprehend him, which Fort Leavenworth handlers were friends we he did. However, the passenger fled into an Subscribe to see where had previously met at other kennels. A few we connect next month! others received our quarterly care packages Fort Leavenworth Kennels continued on page 2 Page 2 MWDTSA KENNEL TALK Volume 8 Issue 10 October 2016 www.mwdtsa.org Fort Leavenworth Kennel continued from page 1 Left: During this demonstration, MWD Mmace and SPC Deatherage worked a building search, seeking a suspect who fled from a traffic stop. Right: MWD Mmace has found his suspect and is in the process of getting his cooperation. Dog teams work daily to learn new skills and keep their profi- ciency levels high. The guys, front row left to right: Thanks to this amazing team of handlers for putting on a thought- The hard working decoy, SGT ful and challenging demonstra- Kloeckel, SSG Berber, and SSG tion for us. Hensen. We appreciate that they all sup- Kneeling behind the decoy is SPC ported the efforts and invited Deatherage who was working Captain Stevens to join in on the Mmace to find the decoy. fun. Standing in the back row, left to right: SFC Thompson, the Kennel Master, SSG Pate, Trainer, CPT Stevens, SPC Peyton and Volun- teer, Jerry Whitman abandoned building. We followed behind told his K9 to seek a scent source. Spyk energy to supporting deployed handlers and watched Mmace locate the suspect, quartered back and forth through the field, and K9s throughout the world with essen- then convince him to follow the directions working efficiently to find traces of the tial care items. called out by SPC Deatherage. odor he sought. Once he caught a whiff, Spyk again moved back and forth to the After the demonstrations, everyone re- SSG Berber and MWD Roy showed us what edges of the scent cone, following it as it turned to the kennels for pizza and gifts: they’ve learned in training classes over the narrowed to its origin. As the odor became coffee, dog toys, T-shirts, patches, and past ten weeks. SSG Berber placed three stronger, Spyk strained against the track- more. We took our time and enjoyed the training bumpers out in a field: left, cen- ing harness and we could see him on tar- company of a great group of handlers who ter, and right. He then gave directional get. Once he confirmed the scent source, are dedicated to their craft and the protec- cues to MWD Roy, who ran out to the cor- Spyk sat to indicate that further investiga- tion of our nation. responding area and retrieved the bumper. tion was required. He looked almost as if Through this exercise, the handler teaches he was saying, “Here it is, Dad.” Eventually, we had to say farewell to our the MWD to follow a directional command gracious hosts. All told, it was a magnifi- and search a specific area off-lead. SFC Thompson also presented Dixie Whit- cent day spent with awesome handlers at man, one of the MWDTSA co-founders, a a gorgeous military installation. SPC Peyton and his furry buddy, MWD Challenge Coin from the Commander for Spyk, showed us how a dog searches a her commitment to MWDs. Over the years, large field for explosives. SPC Peyton first Dixie has dedicated much of her time and Fort Leavenworth Kennel continued on page 3 Volume 8 Issue 10 October 2016 MWDTSA KENNEL TALK Page 3 www.mwdtsa.org Fort Leavenworth Kennel continued from page 2 Above left to right: Don’t let the cuteness fool you into thinking this guy is all fluff and no substance. MWD Spyk and his handler, SPC Pey- ton, demonstrated how a dog team can search a large area, hone in on a scent cone, and identify the source of an odor. Each dog is trained on a variety of explosives or illegal drugs. SPC Peyton and MWD Spyk found that odor in a very quick timeframe. You can see in the photo on the left that Spyk is pulling hard towards the origin of the smell, in the center is a team photo, and on the right, Spyk sits to indicate the source of the odor. Below left to right: MWD Roy and his handler, SSG Berber. The skills that Berber and Roy demonstrated were significantly difficult in that they just returned from off-leash training where directional signals and verbal cues are trained so that the dog is working leash-free. On the left, MWD Roy returns with the correct bumper, in the center, a team photo, and on the right, directions are given to MWD Roy to go to the left. He will transition that into searching to the left without being on leash and under physical control. Page 4 MWDTSA KENNEL TALK Volume 8 Issue 10 October 2016 www.mwdtsa.org Talk Like Pirates, Pack Like MWDTSA Volunteers Story by D. Whitman; Photos by Allison Merrill Pictured above: Allison Merrill (Left), Captain Tank with his pirate-y hat, and Alli- son’s crew of creative and experienced packers. Fun costumes worn by volunteers Our Michigan team of volunteer packers, enhanced the pirate theme. led by the intrepid Allison Merrill, did it again! They broke their own speed record for turning boxes upon boxes of goodies donated by MWDTSA contributors and sup- porting businesses into “Pirate Treasure Chests” filled with plunder. Our third quarter theme, “Talk Like A Pi- rate,” turned out to be the real treasure. The packing event turned into a pirate party and the photos coming back from the handlers show that our dog teams are really embracing their pirate-themed loot. A huge thank you to all of our benefactors who supported via the Amazon Wish List. The resulting donations of Blackbeard’s Revenge Coffee and Nero Ball donations are shown in photos to the right. Mone- tary donations went towards other care package items and postage for the 175 care packages. We truly appreciate the generous support given by so many, especially the following companies, all which donated goods spe- cifically for this care package: Zuke’s, Aspen Kay Naturals, Bowser Beer, D.O.G.