Page 221 - The History of the Royal Army Veterinary Corps 1962–2021

THE HISTORY OF THE ROYAL ARMY VETERINARY CORPS 1962 – 2021
directly benefitted the BRITFOR units providing improved security and canine welfare. Opening this otherwise specialist trade area to the Reserve improved the sustainability of the Unit and enhanced the flexibility of the deployment of Protection dogs and, at the same time, reduced the turbulence on the manpower of formed units.11
An ORBAT of thirty RAVC and Reservist handlers was proposed. It is not known if the proposal was accepted in full, but in January 200212 the Minor Unit personnel consisted of: One RAVC Sgt, twenty-one Pte – Cpl Patrol Dog handlers of varying cap badges (many being Reservists) and two RAVC LCpl – Cpl AES handlers.
When Op PALATINE launched in 200213 it was established for six RAVC personnel – five dog trainers and one a Vet Technician. At this time two RAVC trainers were employed as AES handlers and two were Explosive Detection dog handlers. They were not part of the RAVC Unit but were MWD (SW) EOD team – the remaining post was the Sgt IC (In Charge).
At this time the RAVC Unit Officer Commanding was a Veterinary Officer, doubling up as the VO and providing ‘top cover’ as required. The RAVC SNCO was responsible for all G1 and G4 activities, as well as the licensing and validation of all Specialist dog teams in addition to providing the chain of command and technical advice on the Operational use of MWDs. By June 2002, seventeen Protection dogs were providing security at four separate BRITFOR locations – Glamoc, Mrkonjic Grad, Kupres and Lipa. Route and area searches were conducted by the EDD handlers, and their four dogs, who shared the commitments of the 24-hour Incident Response Team capability.
During the summer of 200214 the Banja Luka Metal Factory had an established unit of twenty-six dogs; six of them were EDD, two AES and eighteen Protection dogs of which four were Malinois. Thirteen of the Protection dogs were then handled by the Territorial Army handlers.
The dog teams were working to full capacity but at the time, there was no host nation veterinary support available. In the absence of the Pan-Balkans, the VO the VT were able to call on the assistance of a VO from the Norwegian battalion or one of the US Veterinary Surgeons. Although other veterinary surgeons were present, their remote locations made it impossible for them
11 HQ BRITFOR RES/3010/1 dated 22nd January 2001.
12 DAC/G3/10/4 dated January 2002.
13 Pan Balkans Post Operational Tour Report dated 5th June 2002.
14 Chiron Calling 2002 Bosnia Update an article by Cpl Adrian Davies RAVC.
15 Pan Balkans Post Operational Tour Report dated 5th June 2002.
to be useful in an emergency. The situation then called for the RAVC VT to conduct all routine Prophylactic treatment of MWDs and they were well-trained to deal with most situations requiring First Aid. It also fell within the VT’s remit to assist in the control of the feral animals in the absence of the Veterinary Officer.
A huge link with the feral dog problem in the Balkans was the problem of mascot dogs. Despite a policy being in place to deter soldiers from adopting local animals, usually dogs, it still occurred with every Regiment deployed from the UK. The numbers were reduced as the dogs were exported by the Unit or euthanized but it remained an on-going situation. The RAVC actively discouraged the adoption of feral animals as pets and regularly highlighted the negative veterinary public health aspects of encouraging them into BRITFOR locations. A ‘six-month syndrome’ prevailed: the RAVC provided treatment for the animal for six-months, then after the roulement tour was over, if the incoming Unit was unwilling to accept responsibility for the animal then requests were made for it to be euthanised. The mascot issue is and always will be an emotive subject. However, common sense and experience indicate that soldiers deployed on Operations are generally ill-equipped to undertake the responsi- bility of pet ownership.15
On 26th October 2004, almost exactly nine years to the day since the first members of the RAVC landed in Split, the last RAVC soldier departed from the Corps Dog Section, Banja Luka. Over those years, many members of the RAVC took part in a range of Operational titles the FRY presented. On the departure of Pte Ali Sutherland RAVC and her AES dog Womble, the Unit handed over its responsibilities to the Royal Air Force Police. Another chapter in Corps history was closing but new beginnings sprouted from the successful expeditionary deployment, a deployment that those first four RAVC JNCOs could never have realised would transform the future of the Corps and give it a new lease of life.
As the political reform in Northern Ireland gained pace, the handlers’ work concluded and with that came a lack of immediate need to develop new capabilities. The demands in Bosnia presented that need for advancement in new areas. The unfortunate proliferation of mines in the FRY
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