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GARMSIR DISTRICT, Afghanistan (3/29/2012) — Without the
Marine's watchful eyes and his dog's trained nose, the round
metal container packed with 40 pounds of homemade explosives
could have wreaked destruction on their patrol.
U.S. Marine Lance Cpl. Stuart Ferreri, a dog handler with Guard Force Platoon, 3rd Battalion, 3rd Marine Regiment, and 21-year-old native of Northglenn, Colo., and Fancy, an improvised explosive device detection dog, search the outside of a truck commuting past Checkpoint Drahbiash
while Afghan National Police patrolman Dost Mohammad examines the
contents of its bed during Operation Gridlock here, March 21, 2012. Photo by
USMC Cpl. Reece Lodder
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The
Feb. 8 security patrol through the Loya Darvishan region of
southern Helmand province was no different than the hundreds
of others conducted by Lance Cpl. Jarrett Hatley, his
improvised explosive device detection dog Blue and fellow
Marines with 3rd Platoon, Lima Company, 3rd Battalion, 3rd
Marine Regiment.
While passing through the tiny
farming village of Daywala, their Afghan National Army
partners stopped to search a suspicious compound. Upon
finding several mortar casings, the patrol moved to search
the surrounding compounds. They avoided the roads due to the
threat of IEDs, opting to cross into an adjacent field
through an arid, three-foot canal.
Before stepping
into the canal, Hatley noticed a darker patch of dirt that
looked recently disturbed. Halting the patrol, he sent Blue
to sniff for explosives. Moments later, the yellow Labrador
retriever laid down next to the area, confirming the
presence of an IED on the path a dozen more men were about
to travel. |
Hatley was thankful he and Blue found the
IED. He considered anything less a failure.
“While
we're on patrol, everyone looks to Blue and I to keep them
safe,” said Hatley, a 21-year-old native of Millingport,
N.C. “If we mess up, my friends behind me could get blown up
... because of my mistake.”
This necessary pressure
constantly rests on the minds of 30 ‘America's Battalion'
dog handlers and their Labrador retrievers, who are
currently supporting their fellow Marines and Afghan
National Security Forces in Garmsir.
During
pre-deployment training in Hawaii last year, Hatley — a
rifleman by trade — and other 3/3 infantrymen raised their
hands at the opportunity to become dog handlers. Some were
eager for the challenge of learning a new skill; others
simply wanted to help protect Marines and Afghans from
getting hurt, Hatley said.
Between spending seven
months “running and gunning” for insurgents on deployment in
Helmand's Nawa district in 2010 and cross training as
handlers last year, the Marines' roles and responsibilities
changed. Though they remained with their platoons, they were
now called to think and care for two.
On deployment
in Garmsir, thousands of miles from safety in the States,
the pairs of IED hunters travel, work and live together.
They fly on helicopters en route to clearing operations,
search passersby at vehicle checkpoints and rest next to one
another after exhausting patrols.
Clearing patrol
routes from the front, handlers and dogs are the first line
of defense against the enemy IED threat. Together, they
experience biting sandstorms, bitter cold and, as the summer
months near, scorching heat. As a team, they endure the
arduous grind of security patrols and standing post.
“They get tired just like we do ... they're dogs, not
machines,” said Lance Cpl. Nick Lacarra, a dog handler with
CAAT-2, Weapons Company, 3/3, and 20-year-old native of Long
Beach, Calif. “They still want to chase animals and jump
into the canal to cool off.”
While the dogs are often
a challenge to manage, they're vital to each mission. Their
presence and proficiency helps riflemen focus on their
mission instead of worrying about striking an IED, Hatley
said. Since arriving here in November, IED detection dogs
have found four drug caches and two IEDs.
Though the
latter number is a fraction of the 25 IEDs 3/3 Marines have
uncovered, the handlers are thankful these finds are fewer
than they've historically been in Garmsir. In both Nawa and
Garmsir, they've seen friends and peers maimed by IED
explosions. As they continue their search for IEDs here,
they're quick to agree “less is more.”
“I'd rather
not find any IEDs this deployment than have my dog and I
miss one,” said Lance Cpl. Cody Varnell, a dog handler with
Combined Anti-Armor Team 2, Weapons Company, 3/3, and
20-year-old native of Mesquite, Texas.
In between
their challenging duties, handlers and their fellow Marines
often unwind by playing ‘fetch' with the dogs using plastic
bumpers and Frisbees. Since the good-tempered Labrador
retrievers are consistently happy and energetic, they always
help boost the Marines' morale, Lacarra said.
“Even
when we're not patrolling, we keep our dogs engaged,”
Lacarra said. “This keeps them active and takes our minds
off of what we have going on.”
In a combat
environment largely devoid of the safety and comforts of
home, the energetic Labrador retrievers are neither pets nor
expendable objects. They're faithful friends and saviors of
Marines.
“My dog Blue is pretty much like another
Marine, I guess,” Hatley said. “He doesn't know he's doing
it, but he's protecting all of us. If I have him on a patrol
and there's an IED that could hurt us, I know he'll find
it.”
More photos available below
By USMC Cpl. Reece Lodder
Regimental Combat Team-5, 1st Marine Division
Provided
through DVIDS
Copyright 2012
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