K-9s show what it means to be a Devil Dog

Photo By Lance Cpl. Isabelo Tabanguil | Lance Cpl. Cristian Cisneros, a military working dog handler with the Provost Marshal’s Office of Marine Corps Base Hawaii, is apprehended by Dar, a military working dog, during scout training aboard Camp H.M. Smith on May 8, 2017. The purpose of scout training is to help both the handler and their dog to successfully search, pursue and apprehend a suspect. (U.S. Marine Corps photo by Lance Cpl. Isabelo Tabanguil)  

MARINE CORPS BASE HAWAII, HI, UNITED STATES

05.08.2017

Story by Lance Cpl. Isabelo Tabanguil 

Marine Corps Base Hawaii

Marines and military workings dogs with the Provost Marshal’s Office on Marine Corps Base Hawaii conducted scout training aboard Camp H.M. Smith, May 8, 2017.
The purpose of scout training is to help both the handler and their dog to successfully search, pursue and apprehend a suspect.
“Scout training consists of sight, scent and sound,” said Lance Cpl. Dejuan Patterson, a military working dog handler with PMO. “That means the dogs have to pick up on the odor, sound or visually make contact with who or what’s out there.”
Patterson said that it’s important to build a strong relationship with your dog before working in the field.
“As a handler, one of the biggest things you have to focus on is rapport with your dog,” said Patterson. “After you build rapport with your dog, the next step is working on obedience.”
Once the bond is there, the military working dogs provide a huge advantage when working in the field, Patterson said.
“Since we’re in Hawaii there are a lot of forest areas, even on base,” Patterson said. “It’s good to have a dog because they have a heightened sense of smell, and can detect intruders or criminals more easily than the handlers can.”
Cpl. Stevie Ezzell, a military working dog handler with PMO, said that the scouting technique can be used not only to apprehend a suspect, but to also help search for someone.
“It doesn’t always have to be you releasing the dog to go bite someone,” Ezzell said. “It could just be someone’s missing and we’re going to out to find them.”
Ezzell added that using the wind helps in the search for a missing individual.
“By knowing which way the wind is blowing can help reveal a certain pattern,” Ezzell said. “You can use it to your advantage, and help your dog catch the scent of whoever you’re tracking down.”
Ezzell said that it’s not only important to observe the wind, but to watch the dog’s behavior as well.
“The way K-9s alert us is through a change of behavior,” Ezzell said. “Usually the dog starts pulling on the leash, acting [strange], and it points out that something could be out there.”
Sgt. Punahele Moku, the chief military working dog trainer with PMO, said that sometimes the dog will lose the scent and it’s up to the handler to help their dog pick it back up.
“If we lose the trail, the dog will show disinterest and maybe confusion,” Moku said. “So the handler will backtrack to where the last time the dog actually showed change of behavior, and re-bracket off the old scent until we get close to the source.”
Moku said that losing the trail isn’t the only problem the handler and dog have to deal with.
“Excessive rain masks the odor the dog is trying to track,” Moku said. “Everything the suspect we’re pursuing touches, such as trees and bushes, leaves behind an odor that is hidden by the rain making it harder for the dog to track.”
Moku said extreme heat is something the handlers need to focus on because it can be fatal to the dogs.
“A dog’s natural body temperature is 100.5 to 102.5 degrees,” Moku said. “These dogs are working so hard that their internal temperatures can reach 106 to 107 degrees. This is close to dangerous as anything above 108 is fatal and can cause brain damage to the dog.”
Despite the difficulties the handlers and dogs have to go through, Moku said he’s proud of how well they conducted scouting.
“The qualities displayed by these dog teams are exceptional,” Moku said. “We are fortunate to have handlers that are enthusiastic about bettering themselves, not individually, but as a dog team.”

• Date Taken: 05.08.2017
• Date Posted: 05.17.2017 15:42
• Story ID: 234177
• Location: MARINE CORPS BASE HAWAII, HI, US