My Malinoises is 15 years old now, best dog ever.
Loyal, smart, predictable.
Total sweetheart, the neighbors are terrified of him...a good thing.
They probably became unit mascots, got lavish attention from soldiers, and got doggie treats for sniffing out explosives. Their biggest adjustment to civilian life will be adjusting to a non-spoiled life and finding a new provider of doggie treats.
The TSA adopts dogs out that fail training. You have to go to San Antonio to pick them up
It’s interesting how these animals are trained. It starts as a game, the dog looking for his favorite toy. Then the trainer starts hiding the toy along with an explosive until the dog begins to associate the toy with the search item. Then they stop hiding the toy with the explosive but the trainer still has to keep the toy hidden on his person. Then when the dog finds the explosive the trainer does a little sleight of hand to trick the dog into thinking the toy was there as well all along (this step is necessary because when they search for bombs for real, the reward toy obviously won’t be co-located with it). When the dog begins its career as a real-world bomb-sniffer, the trainer is still carrying the hidden reward toy. It never comes to understand it’s not still the same game they’ve been playing together since it was a pup, and the trainer that illusion by always rewarding its discovery of explosives with the toy.
Bttt.
5.56mm
I’d love to adopt one, but I already have three dogs. I have no doubt that they will make wonderful pets.