Families serve themselves, country by breeding working dogs

[dogs4life]

SAN ANTONIO - The house was quiet after both family pets, golden retrievers, died six months apart.

Then, two months after the second one's death, Dr. George Wolf, his wife and two teenage children had a puppy at home, although it was just visiting.

"It definitely helped emotionally" after losing their canine companions, Wolf said.

Since then, the Wolfs have been in perpetual puppyhood, raising Belgian Malinois pups for Uncle Sam.

They signed up for the Department of Defense Military Working Dog Breeding Program when it began in 2000, and have raised five pups that have become military working dogs.

Next month, they'll get a sixth puppy, to be treated much like a pet, then trained at Lackland AFB. Once trained, the dogs are sent to U.S. bases around the world.

Some are placed in U.S. Customs or Border Patrol service, or sent to other law enforcement agencies.

Because of a high demand for bomb-sniffing dogs, Lackland needs volunteers to care for at least 20 new pups.

Fellow, the first dog the Wolfs raised, flunked his training - he was a late bloomer in the aggression category - and was adopted as their pet. The other four pups made good. One is a San Francisco police dog. The other, because of her keen sense of smell, is used for breeding.

"It's very gratifying," Wolf said. "You're helping the military, and society."

Aside from having to take the pups to Lackland for brief visits twice a month, there is no cost to volunteers. The program supplies food, veterinary care and even dog chews.

During the visits, volunteers can watch base personnel work with the pups, said Lacy Smith, program manager.

"I play with them, make sure they're well-rounded and healthy, and not gaining too much weight," she said.

Because the dogs train for various tasks: patrol, protection and drug and explosives detection, they need exposure to different noises, people and animals. A family home is the best place for a pup that may someday work in all kinds of situations, Smith said.

"Worldwide events have definitely increased the need for explosive-detection dogs," she said.

About 60 pups from the program are now working, and 140 are in training. Pups are handed over to volunteers at about 9 weeks old, then returned seven to nine months later, when they undergo a year of training at Lackland.

Kay Heihn, who also has two companion dogs, has raised military pups for four years. When one of them completes training, it's as if one of her children has graduated from college, she said.

"It's phenomenal, knowing that you have a hand in raising a dog that has the potential to save lives," Heihn said.

Her favorite, Ori, is training at Lackland, and has mated with two females. Even as a pup, Ori was house-trained.

Soon, Heihn will get to take home her eighth pup, one of Ori's offspring, she said.

"I've been telling everyone that I'm a grandmother."


SCOTT HUDDLESTON
San Antonio Express-News