LHS Psych students tap into the mind of military police dogs

Photo By Sgt. Juan Madrigal | Military police dogs are taken through the obedience course as part of the demonstration for high school students. Students from Lejeune High School visit Provost Marshal Office kennels to learn how psychology ties into training dogs, Nov. 17. (U.S. Marine Corps photo by Pfc. Juan Madrigal/Released)  

MARINE CORPS BASE CAMP LEJEUNE, NC, UNITED STATES

11.17.2016

Story by Pfc. Juan Madrigal  

Marine Corps Installations East       

The advance placement psychology class of Lejeune High School took a field trip to the Provost Marshals Office kennels, Nov. 17. High schoolers witnessed a demonstration of what military police dogs are capable of as well as how they are trained.

The trip’s purpose was for students to observe the dogs’ behavior and why they react the way they do to certain smells and commands. Each student’s goal was to write a report on what psychology had to do with how the dogs were trained.

"I came to the class because I want to learn how the brain works," said Victor Ramirez, a student at Lejeune High School. "Coming here is helping a lot because you get to see the things we learn about in person, and we can actually connect it to what we learn in class to remember it better."

Psychology affects dogs even more than the human brain. The dogs are given a reward after they complete a desired task so they associate things that they like, such as toys or food, with explosive devices and narcotics.

"This demonstration was geared toward the psychology that goes into training dogs," said John Salvetti, kennel master for the provost marshals office. "We gave (the students) a capabilities demonstration as well as a rundown of how we get (the dogs trained).

Dogs and dog handlers must build a strong relationship, so the dogs listen to that person and don’t get distracted by others. Handlers usually don’t stay with the same dog their entire career. A dog or handler may retire and require a new partner — a handler would then slowly incorporate himself in the dogs’ daily life until the dog recognizes him as the new master.

"If a handler (were to) leave today we would let that dog sit for a few days and not let it have any socialization with a human, other than just basic necessities," said Salvetti. "The new handler would come in and take that dog out for a walk, throw a toy to him, not give him any commands, maybe groom him. After a couple days like that, (depending on how the relationship is going), from there we’ll go ahead and start doing basic obedience, attack and detection work. The dog will just come to know that this must be my new mom or dad, because that’s going to be the only person to be taking them out for a walk."

Although the students couldn’t have any physical contact with the dogs, they enjoyed the opportunity to learn something new.

"It was a good experience, and we should do field trips like this more often," said Ramirez.

• Date Taken: 11.17.2016
• Date Posted: 11.28.2016 08:23
• Story ID: 215825
• Location: MARINE CORPS BASE CAMP LEJEUNE, NC, US