GROTON, Conn. – A Naval Submarine Base (SUBASE) New London military working dog was retired from her official duties and adopted into a home to enjoy a new life as a pet, July 30.
Lola A042 is a Jagdterrier who worked two years for SUBASE New London Security Department. Smaller than what most people picture when they imagine a police dog, Lola’s mission was sniffing out drugs or other contraband in places where larger working dogs could not reach.
“Her initial job was mainly for submarines, because she could fit into tight spaces,” said Master-at-Arms 2nd Class Andrew Bagley, who was Lola’s handler before her retirement. “I think we did three of those kinds of jobs with her. It was still a little hard getting her down there, but it’s easier with a 13-pound dog than an 80-pound dog.”
Lola has seemingly infinite amounts of energy and loved her work sniffing for out-of-place scents or pursuing leads. The problem, Bagley said, was that while Lola was zealous, she was prone to being zealous for the wrong things.
“Lola was a very high-drive dog,” said Bagley. “Anytime you went in the kennels and looked at her, she’d just be bouncing off the walls. She would just be running back and forth, going up the walls like a skateboarder on a halfpipe. She was always 90 miles an hour. She loved to work, but she also had a very high prey-drive. Any animal that walked by her, she would try to chase after them. She’s a Jagdterrier; German for hunting terrier. She’s got that hunter in her. That could make it a little hard to work with her because anytime she saw a bird or a fly, I’d have to get her attention again.”
Bagley said small breeds often prove harder to handle due to their more energetic, fiery personalities. As a result, kennel leadership made the decision to retire Lola and put her up for adoption.
“There’s a sequence of priority,” said Chief Master-at-Arms Shannon Chatterton, SUBASE New London kennel master, of the adoption process for military working dogs. “The first person to get priority is the handler the dog knows best. After that are other handlers, after that anybody on the installation can adopt the dog. If nobody on the installation or in the local area can take the dog, it’ll be sent down to Lackland Air Force Base, but that rarely happens. We had to look out and find someone who was able and willing to take on a dog like Lola. CMC stepped in and wanted to take Lola into his own home.”
SUBASE New London Command Master Chief Raj Sodhi, whose family farm is home to many animals, adopted Lola and welcomed her into his home. Sodhi expressed his appreciation for military working dogs and the jobs they do and said Lola is settling into her new life quiet well.
“Adopting Lola has been a real honor for my family,” said Sodhi. “A lot of people don’t realize the amount of deployments that our kennel staff and working dogs do on a regular basis. They do missions with the president both in and out of country and make routine deployments in the Middle East. I’m happy to have another Navy vet in the house. She’s established herself as the leading petty officer or leading chief petty officer in the house without a doubt. She’s got quite the personality. She’s adapting well to civilian life, but it does take some time. She’s lived her whole life in a working environment so she’s getting used to being a dog and going out to play like a normal civilian dog would.”
Lola was retired in an official ceremony in which her nameplate was taken off the gate to her kennel. Security personnel and working dogs saluted Lola as she departed the base with a police escort in Sodhi’s truck on the way to her new home.
| Date Taken: | 08.14.2020 |
| Date Posted: | 01.22.2021 13:18 |
| Story ID: | 387396 |
| Location: | GROTON, CONNECTICUT, US |
| Web Views: | 60 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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