Royal Army Veterinary Corps Brief History of Military Working Dogs

Royal Army Veterinary Corps
Brief History of Military Working Dogs
The RAVC can trace its history back over 200 years to when the first veterinary surgeons were
commissioned into the Army in the late 18th century. Today the RAVC still procures, supports and treats
the Army’s horses that are used for ceremonial purposes, but for the last 60 years the Corps has
focused much more on dogs. Most RAVC soldiers and officers are engaged in the selection, training,
operational handling and caring for a wide range of Military Working Dogs (MWDs). These dogs are
used to provide deterrence, their primary function. Detection - the MWDs actual secondary function,
and lastly for the Protection dog, if necessary and as a last resort to apprehend intruders. The RAVC’s
dogs warn soldiers of enemy ambushes, patrol given areas to provide security, search vehicles for
weapons and explosives, detect IEDs using a ‘stand off ‘detect capability that saves life and limb.
It was in March 1889 that a veterinary officer – Lieutenant Colonel Col EE Bennett - first proposed the
use of dogs for military purposes such as guarding, reconnaissance, patrolling, tracking and searching.
At that time in 1889 his views were thought to be far too novel and futuristic to be adopted! At the
beginning of World War One the British Army still did not hold dogs and it was not until 1916 that
Lieutenant Colonel Richardson persuaded the War Office of the value of trained dogs. The first
demand was for messenger dogs many being deployed to Flanders. However, despite their proven
worth the cessation of hostilities saw the temporary eclipse of dogs in the British Army. In World War 2
it was not until 1942 that an experimental establishment was opened by the RAVC in Aldershot to
produce trained dogs - this time trackers. Once introduced the demand for dogs was great and the
experimental unit moved to the Greyhound Racing Kennels at Potters Bar where it remained until 1945,
when a site for the school was found in Brussels.
Since 1945 RAVC soldiers have served in every major campaign - Palestine 1946-47 with mine
detection and patrol dogs, Korea 1950-54 with infantry patrol and protection dogs, Kenya 1952-56
during the Mau Mau Campaign with infantry patrol, trackers and patrol dogs, Malaya 1948/1960-65 with
Combat Tracking Teams, infantry patrol and protection dogs, Cyprus 1955-59 Eoka Campaign where
the arms and explosive search dog evolved, Aden1960-68 infantry patrol, search and patrol dogs, onto
Northern Ireland in the late 60s and Hong Kong 1979-1996 where over 250 Hong Kong Chinese
handler’s wearing the RAVC cap badge were employed handling sweep dogs, tracker, arms and
explosive search and protection dogs. Bosnia 1995-2005 explosive detection dogs (mine detection),
vehicle search, arms and explosive search, tracker and patrol dogs were widely deployed. Kosovo
1999-2003 vehicle search, arms and explosive search, drug and protection dogs. Iraq 2003-2010 with
vehicle search, arms and explosive search and patrol dogs. Afghanistan 2002 to 2014, with vehicle
search, arms and explosive search and patrol dogs, earlier in the conflict improvised explosive device
detection dogs and high assurance search dogs were very successful and consequently were deployed
in vast numbers to thwart the threat from the road side bomb.
101 Military Working Dog Support Unit, located in Aldershot, (part of 101 Logistics Brigade), was
created in April 2002 from the renaming and re-rolling of the RAVC Support Group. Prior to this the unit
was the RAVC Laboratory and Stores, which primarily despatched stores and veterinary medicines to
the numerous RAVC units worldwide, the forerunner of this unit was the RAVC Tactical Dog Troop.
101’ provided patrol and specialist dogs and handlers for security and explosive ordnance disposal
tasks both in the UK and on overseas operations.
102 Military Working dog support Unit, (part of 102 Logistic Brigade), traces its origins back to the 24th
October 1945 when the Army Dog Training School moved from Belgium into the whole of Theatre
Barracks up to the range gate of the Sennelager Training Centre. During the 1970s the unit was
renamed 1 Army Dog Training Unit with a further name change again in the 1980s to the Defence
Animal Support Unit Germany. 103’ and 105‘ Support Units were formed in Sennelager to manage the
growing need for RAVC handlers during 2008 and 2009 to further support operations.
On 1 August 2007, 104 Military Working Dog Support Unit, (part of 104 Logistic Support Brigade), was
re-rolled and re-named reflecting its new function - supporting expeditionary operations. 104’ based at
North Luffenham, reconfigured from the Army Dog Unit Northern Ireland RAVC - the ‘Army Dog Unit
formed due to ‘the Troubles’ in Northern Ireland; during April 1969 personnel from the RAVC Training
Centre and the RAVC Tactical Dog Troop at Aldershot were requested to provide guard dogs to assist
in the security of the Internment Camp situated at Long Kesh. As ‘the Troubles’ escalated, it was
obvious to Commanders that both protection and specialist dogs such as tracker dogs and search dogs
would play an important part in the fight against terrorist activities.
On 1 May 1973 the Army Dog Unit was formed. By mid-1974 approximately 180 men from over 60
different Regiments and Corps were serving with the Unit. The special role and composition of the Unit
was recognised in 1974 when the Commander Land Forces, Major General PJH Leng MC MBE
granted personnel the right to wear a Red Paw badge 3/12ths of an inch, in their headdress to the left of
their regimental cap badge.
Primarily RAVC soldiers now handle MWDs, their use has been in high demand on operations in recent
years in Northern Ireland, the Balkans, Iraq and more recently in Afghanistan. This operational demand
has seen the RAVC increase in size by 500% in the 5 years 2008 –2013. Resulting in the formation of
1 Military Working Dog Regiment (RAVC) on 26 March 2010. 1 MWD Regiment assumed command of
the five MWD squadrons, 3 of which have a long history as well as the small detachment in Cyprus. As
part of the Army 2020 restructuring process, 3 Hybrid Squadrons, 102, 104 and 105, (comprising a
balance of both Regular and Reserve personnel) were reconfigured in 2015. 101 MWD Squadron was
re-roled to form a Reserve Squadron in the spring of 2015 and relocated to North Luffenham from
Puckeridge Lines Aldershot in late 2014. 103 Reserve Squadron will start to recruit personnel in the
autumn of 2015. In total 350 Reserves will compliment 1 MWD Regiment’s Regular personnel.
The
Regimental Headquarters moved to North Luffenham in the summer of 2015. 102 and 105 Military
Working Dog Squadrons are still based in Sennelager and are due to return to the UK in the summer of
2017.
The success and growth of the RAVC today is directly attributed to the sheer professionalism of its
soldiers on a wide range of operations in recent years, notably the war in Afghanistan.