Post by Brooke on Feb 26, 2004 15:49:55 GMT -5
Posted on Wed, Feb. 25, 2004
Shelter dogs ship out to Afghanistan to help Army
BY BILL TEETER
Knight Ridder Newspapers
FORT WORTH, Texas - (KRT) - The Army doesn't care that Popeye and his four-footed co-worker Bosco don't have fancy pedigrees.
The only thing that matters is that the mutts can sniff.
In a canine Cinderella story, the pair - Labrador mixes who were too rambunctious to make good family pets - were pulled from a Fort Worth, Texas, animal shelter to do explosive-detection work for the Army in Afghanistan.
They are shipping out this week from Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport for Kandahar, Afghanistan, the first of more than a dozen pound puppies from North Texas being trained for worldwide service under a special program.
"We are saving lives of animals who would generally not be acceptable as backyard companions," said Fort Worth animal control officer Chick Gardner, who founded the Gifted Animal Program that identifies service-worthy animals in local shelters.
"They are the ones picked up on the street; they are the high-energy, high-focus dogs," he said. "If just one of them saves one child's life or alerts on an ounce of explosive that could take a soldier's life, the whole program is worth it."
GAP, which operates under the umbrella of the North Central Texas Animal Shelter Coalition, monitors animal shelters for dogs that can be put to work, Gardner said.
Popeye and Bosco were singled out by volunteers because of their high energy, focus and ability to detect odors, he said.
They were taken from the shelter and sent to a civilian trainer in North Texas for training to detect explosives. Gardner would not identify the trainer, saying he is working with the government and is concerned about security.
Their training completed, the animals were scheduled to board a Lufthansa cargo jet to be deployed with a military police unit, Gardner said.
Eighteen other dogs from shelters in North Texas are being prepared for eventual use by the military or by military contractors for detecting explosives, he said.
GAP volunteer Karen Vass says the program proves that there's a place for animals that other people think are worthless.
"The man told them he couldn't stand him," Vass said of Bosco, a chocolate-colored dog who playfully reared on his hind legs to reach for her shoulders with his paws.
Vass is also caring for a Jack Russell terrier with an admittedly nasty disposition that is being considered for placement as a snake-hunter in Guam, where a burgeoning reptile population is creating problems.
Gardner, a former Marine, said he founded GAP in 1999 and initially operated it informally, with a handful of volunteers helping identify dogs suitable for special training.
The program has expanded its scope and now offers diagnostic training to shelter operators so they can spot promising dogs, he said.
To qualify, a dog should be about a year to 18 months old, Gardner said.
Volunteers select the animals after putting them through a series of exercises to test their energy, ability to focus and determination to pursue a goal, such as chasing a ball or scent, Gardner said.
If successful, they will spend about eight years in service, he said.
Although the two Fort Worth dogs were civilian-trained, many military dogs are trained by the government. One training center at Lackland Air Force Base in San Antonio trains mostly German shepherds and Belgian Malinois for detection as well as patrol, said Air Force Lt. Elaine Larson, a Lackland spokeswoman.
The dogs are trained to sniff for either narcotics or explosives but never both, Larson said.
"The handler can't be guessing about what the dog is detecting," Larson said.
Gardner said his faith in dogs was forged more than 30 years ago in Vietnam. His unit took dogs along to detect booby traps, but he said the animals often alerted soldiers that hostile troops were nearby.
"We never got ambushed when we had a dog with us," Gardner said.
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© 2004, Fort Worth Star-Telegram.
Visit the Star-Telegram on the World Wide Web at www.star-telegram.com.
Distributed by Knight Ridder/Tribune Information Services.
Shelter dogs ship out to Afghanistan to help Army
BY BILL TEETER
Knight Ridder Newspapers
FORT WORTH, Texas - (KRT) - The Army doesn't care that Popeye and his four-footed co-worker Bosco don't have fancy pedigrees.
The only thing that matters is that the mutts can sniff.
In a canine Cinderella story, the pair - Labrador mixes who were too rambunctious to make good family pets - were pulled from a Fort Worth, Texas, animal shelter to do explosive-detection work for the Army in Afghanistan.
They are shipping out this week from Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport for Kandahar, Afghanistan, the first of more than a dozen pound puppies from North Texas being trained for worldwide service under a special program.
"We are saving lives of animals who would generally not be acceptable as backyard companions," said Fort Worth animal control officer Chick Gardner, who founded the Gifted Animal Program that identifies service-worthy animals in local shelters.
"They are the ones picked up on the street; they are the high-energy, high-focus dogs," he said. "If just one of them saves one child's life or alerts on an ounce of explosive that could take a soldier's life, the whole program is worth it."
GAP, which operates under the umbrella of the North Central Texas Animal Shelter Coalition, monitors animal shelters for dogs that can be put to work, Gardner said.
Popeye and Bosco were singled out by volunteers because of their high energy, focus and ability to detect odors, he said.
They were taken from the shelter and sent to a civilian trainer in North Texas for training to detect explosives. Gardner would not identify the trainer, saying he is working with the government and is concerned about security.
Their training completed, the animals were scheduled to board a Lufthansa cargo jet to be deployed with a military police unit, Gardner said.
Eighteen other dogs from shelters in North Texas are being prepared for eventual use by the military or by military contractors for detecting explosives, he said.
GAP volunteer Karen Vass says the program proves that there's a place for animals that other people think are worthless.
"The man told them he couldn't stand him," Vass said of Bosco, a chocolate-colored dog who playfully reared on his hind legs to reach for her shoulders with his paws.
Vass is also caring for a Jack Russell terrier with an admittedly nasty disposition that is being considered for placement as a snake-hunter in Guam, where a burgeoning reptile population is creating problems.
Gardner, a former Marine, said he founded GAP in 1999 and initially operated it informally, with a handful of volunteers helping identify dogs suitable for special training.
The program has expanded its scope and now offers diagnostic training to shelter operators so they can spot promising dogs, he said.
To qualify, a dog should be about a year to 18 months old, Gardner said.
Volunteers select the animals after putting them through a series of exercises to test their energy, ability to focus and determination to pursue a goal, such as chasing a ball or scent, Gardner said.
If successful, they will spend about eight years in service, he said.
Although the two Fort Worth dogs were civilian-trained, many military dogs are trained by the government. One training center at Lackland Air Force Base in San Antonio trains mostly German shepherds and Belgian Malinois for detection as well as patrol, said Air Force Lt. Elaine Larson, a Lackland spokeswoman.
The dogs are trained to sniff for either narcotics or explosives but never both, Larson said.
"The handler can't be guessing about what the dog is detecting," Larson said.
Gardner said his faith in dogs was forged more than 30 years ago in Vietnam. His unit took dogs along to detect booby traps, but he said the animals often alerted soldiers that hostile troops were nearby.
"We never got ambushed when we had a dog with us," Gardner said.
---
© 2004, Fort Worth Star-Telegram.
Visit the Star-Telegram on the World Wide Web at www.star-telegram.com.
Distributed by Knight Ridder/Tribune Information Services.