Page 36 - The History of the Royal Army Veterinary Corps 1962–2021

THE HISTORY OF THE ROYAL ARMY VETERINARY CORPS 1962 – 2021
Another element of the Centenary celebrations was the inaugural International Canine Biathlon. The special one-day event was the brainchild of Colonel John Clifford. It was a trial sponsored by 1 ADTU, on an international basis, for military working dogs in Western Europe and devised to test the efficiency, ingenuity, tenacity and endurance of each of the two and four-legged team members. Teams, each consisting of two handlers with their dogs, came from the German Army, the German Civilian Police Dog School, the USA Air Force, the Royal Netherlands Air Force as well as the RAVC.
The first exercise was straight forward heelwork and control undertaken without commands, from either judge or steward, within a time limit of six-minutes. Each team worked to a set routine from memory, and the test included all the normal heelwork, together with a ‘stand stay’ exercise with the handler marching forward 20m and recalling on the judge’s signal. The overall standard was judged as extremely high and showed an excellent understanding and rapport between dog and handler. The German team from the Civilian Police gave a faultless performance, with the German Army team from Berlin losing only four points and the Bundeswehr Training Team only six.
The next test was described as ‘free expression.’ Three minutes was allowed for each team to show off their dogs’ working capabilities and standard of control. It provided plenty of opportunity for ingenuity and for handlers to demonstrate their initiative and use their own training aids and simple equipment. This proved to be the most interesting section of the test because, although some of the teams worked well they failed to show initiative and their exercises were shown to be nothing more than an extension of ordinary obedience. The British team – excelled. In a number of well thought out exercises they demonstrated the real versatility of their dogs and lost only two points overall. It was an outstanding example of the trust that is so necessary in the partnership of handler and dog.
One further test was designed to push that teamwork to its limits. Each handler was required to patrol a given area with his dog, on a lead, at his heel. Ahead of them, two ‘criminals’ hid close to the patrol route, awaiting the dog to indicate their presence. At that point, the handler and his dog went forward to challenge the suspects and order them to “halt!”It must be said that the role of the ‘criminal’ was played very enthusiastically and courageously with no one giving themselves up easily. In one case, while the first villain was being
apprehended and searched, the second dashed away at great pace and the handler only released his dog just in time to catch him and bring him down before he reached the edge of the field and found sanctuary in the ‘out of bounds area’. The standard of work was exceptionally high with the British team showing efficiency and a meticulous attention to detail on the patrol, apprehending and searching suspects, and in escorting them to the security compound. They were more than a match for the German Army team from Berlin.
One canine member of the German Civilian Police School, appropriately named “Hero” was an exceptional candidate. His keenness and his powerful attack had to be seen to believed. He brought down his padded suited victim in a flash, establishing that any real-life criminal would have little chance against him. The maximum points that could be awarded for the challenge was 50, but Hero was so good that the adjudicator felt that he had no alternative but to put the dog forward for a 5 point bonus!
This marked the half-way stage of the of the trial and the German Police Dog School led with 292 points out of 300: the Bundeswehr Training School and the British team were in equal second place with 290 points. Then came the Cross-Country.
The idea for this leg of the competition also sprang from the fertile imagination of Colonel Clifford, and it proved to be an excellent test of fitness, tenacity, and endurance. Each handler and dog team had to complete the 1,500 metre course, against the clock. Far from being a straightforward cross-country course, the ground was littered with a number of obstacles, including a stream crossing and various novice-hunter-trial-type fences. The course was route signed and obstacles marked and numbered in the normal hunter trial manner with all fences a challenge for handler and dog. The method of surmounting the obstacles was entirely optional and there was no limit to the number of attempts at each obstacle. However, the ‘bogey’ time for the course was eight minutes. For every 10 seconds over the ‘bogey’ time, one point was deducted from a 50 point optimum mark, – with one point added for every 10 seconds under the bogey time. There was elimination for any competitor exceeding 30 minutes for the course.
The event was undertaken with an enormous enthusiasm and was supported, at every stage, with a great deal of encouragement from other team members along the course. It was in this event that the British team really shone and LCpl Chris Ham with his dog “Squire”, being the only partnership to pick-up bonus points. Cpl Spud
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