Military dogs demonstrate at Potter Jr. High

Recently, Potter Jr. High School celebrated Red Ribbon Week with Camp Pendleton Marines showing off the expertise of their military dogs which assist the military police by apprehending criminals and locating hidden illegal drugs.

One dog, Kevin, has been to Iraq twice and survived two bomb attacks. He is trained to only follow his handler’s instructions. He showed how he alone can run down and stop a criminal attempting to flee.

The students watched in awe as Kevin grabbed the arm of his trainer’s assistant, who was wearing a thick, orange protective jumpsuit, stopping on a dime as the trainer commanded, “Down!”

Another of the dogs, Brenda, is an explosives and narcotics detection canine. She is trained to passively detect minute amounts of explosives or illegal drugs. When she located a suspicious smell, she promptly sat and ‘pointed’ with her nose toward the substance.

The officers said that the dogs are extremely valuable, with an $80,000 price tag, and joked that they live the ‘high life,’ often with better accommodations than their human military handlers.