DLA Disposition Services helps Army unit keep explosive-detecting dogs in the fight

Courtesy Photo | Lee, an improvised explosive device detection dog, sits with Robert Weiner, a contractor who cares for Labrador retrievers, in the dog ambulance at Camp Leatherneck, Afghanistan. The veterinary clinic there recently got the ambulance thanks to work by the 401st Army Field Support Brigade and DLA Disposition Services. (Photo by Elise Van Pool)  

FORT BELVOIR, VA, UNITED STATES

10.03.2011

Story by Sara Moore 

Defense Logistics Agency   

FORT BELVOIR, Va. -- Two Army units in Afghanistan are working together to keep improvised explosive device detection dogs healthy, and they recently got some important help from Defense Logistics Agency Disposition Services to accomplish that mission.

The 358th Medical Detachment, Veterinary Services, is an Army Reserve unit from Alabama that treats injured or sick IED detection dogs in addition to other missions. The 401st Army Field Support Brigade adopted the 358th and linked it to its Logistics Task Force Leatherneck, according to an Army news article.

Army Col. Richard O'Connor, 401st AFSB commander, knew the 358th needed an ambulance to transport the injured dogs. His Soldiers worked with DLA Disposition Services at Camp Leatherneck, Afghanistan, to find and refurbish a Humvee ambulance to transport the military working dogs from the airfield to the veterinary clinic. The 401st also obtained a Humvee for use as a secondary ambulance.

"We had no way to receive a patient from the airfield," said Army Capt. Bradley Fields, a veterinarian. "The ambulance lets us transport litter-bound patients."

Fields has completed more than 400 surgeries in what is now a level 3 veterinary trauma hospital. He recalled using duct tape on the first dog he cared for. He said injuries to the dogs include shrapnel wounds, hernias, sucking chest wounds and post traumatic stress. The only injuries that cannot be cared for in theater are long-bone fractures due to the lengthy recovery time.

"Our job is to keep the dogs healthy and in the field," Fields added.

Making it Possible

The DLA Disposition Services site at Camp Leatherneck is one of three full-time disposition sites in Afghanistan. The site has been active since August 2010 and deals primarily with battle-damaged military vehicles like Humvees.

Increasing the DLA Disposition Services presence in Afghanistan over the past few years, including the Leatherneck site, has greatly improved disposition support to troops in country, DLA Central Commander Army Col. Michael Bird said in the July issue of Loglines magazine.

“Having multiple disposition yards gives us operational flexibility and is a force protection measure because it keeps people off the roads,” Bird said.

Bird added that DLA always likes to be able to reuse equipment, such as the Humvee ambulance used by the 385th, instead of disposing of it, especially when it can benefit U.S. forces.

• Date Taken: 10.03.2011
• Date Posted: 10.05.2011 10:29
• Story ID: 78053
• Location: FORT BELVOIR, VA, US