Page 504 - The History of the Royal Army Veterinary Corps 1962–2021

THE HISTORY OF THE ROYAL ARMY VETERINARY CORPS 1962 – 2021
The site had the capacity for thirty-two MWDs and there was room for more in the medium term for up to forty-eight MWDs. However, under the BSN expansion programme and the construction of TFH BG’s accommodation immediately next door, the MWD Unit would, potentially, present unacceptable noise pollution levels.
Combining human and canine needs in a war zone was rarely problematic as Pte Jess Folkersten RAVC showed in her article for Chiron Calling in 2009:
On Tour with the Best Patrol Dog – “Toby” – OP HERRICK 950
On hearing that I had to write an article for Chiron Calling I was a little overwhelmed and soon realised that I’d be buying a crate in the very near future!
Having only ever experienced one long distance flight, which was awful, I was not looking forward to the flight to Afghanistan especially after being delayed for two days in Brize and having two planes ready to go and then be told that they had faults. Finally, we got underway and after having in-flight meals from RAF ‘air hosts’ and sleeping on the floor, underneath LCpl Rob Ardis’s and Pte Kelly Wolstencroft’s feet, the time to land arrived.
The steep descent wearing your helmet and CBA (Combat Body Armour) and having the lights turned off in the plane, was all a little daunting to say the least. This, however, was not the end of the journey as we still had a long wait in KAF for our connecting flight to Bastion on the mighty Herc. For some reason, unbeknown to me, I actually found this flight enjoyable even though the landing was like being dropped from the sky like a shot from a gun!
The first two-months of the tour were spent living it up in Camp Bastion and learning a lot. However, by this time I was very eager to get pushed forward and do something new. I kept being told by various people to ‘be careful what you wish for ’. It is quite easy to become complacent in Bastion and so I couldn’t wait to go. At the flight line I was told that Sangin was the second stop.
The flight up was awesome with the pilots throwing the helicopter all over and my dog, “Toby” trying to muzzle-bait the guy next to me who was staring at him! At the HLS we were met by LCpl Rob Ardis who took me over the rickety bridge to the Dog Section, where we got settled into the modified ISO kennels/accommodation. The next day I got straight on with it on a familiar- isation patrol through the famous Sangin Bazaar.
My duties included night patrols within the DC,
where we caught an ANA soldier stealing from the kitchen and Toby got a taste of ANA smock; unfortunately, no flesh involved! I was also going on Ops, usually as part of a cordon, or through the Bazaar to keep locals away, where the lads had their cameras nearby in the hopes that Toby would be released! On occasion when Toby was not required, I have been out as Rob’s cover man. That’s where I continued my learning curve, living the busy life of an AES dog handler and seeing the way they work on Green Zone patrols and hearing why you shouldn’t patrol through fields in the rainy season.
At one stage, we had five people and dogs in the ISO for a specific Op around Sangin as the Battle Group had rebalanced its assets from around the AO and had brought in extra from further afield. LCpls Simpson and Jen Lockhart came down from their usual home of FOB Inkerman and LCpl Shone flew up from Lashkar Gah. It was quite a squeeze and quite a smell as you can imagine! When we got pushed forward for the Op, LCpl Lockhart and I, with the two Protection dogs, were the only females in the PB and there were some interesting options for a secure place for us to sleep!
At Christmas everyone made an extra effort to be festive. The chefs managed to get a turkey and gammon ham and the lads did the crazy dressing up thing! The enemy forces tried joining in the fun on our Christmas day patrol by delivering “a present” to the FOB in the form of 82mm HE mortar but they were soon persuaded to reconsider!
I really enjoyed myself at Sangin – in fact I would go as far to say it was “hoofing!”
Op ENTIRETY
During April 2009 Op ENTIRETY was implemented and effectively restructured the Army for Operations.
The British Army’s Operation ENTIRETY described the range of measures that were to be put in place to ensure that the Army was capable of sustaining operations in Afghanistan. The measures, which were short-term and reversible, entailed re-roling and/or re-equipping some units, restructuring some organisations and adopting new approaches to training. Particular emphasis was put on: Improving the Army’s capabilities to counter Improvised Explosive Devices (IEDs); improving the speed with which the Army learnt lessons from Operations and transforming pre-de- ployment training to make it as relevant as possible. Also, improving the Army ’s cultural awareness and after-care for our soldiers returning from Ops.
50 Chiron Calling Winter 2008/Spring 2009 ‘On tour with the best Patrol Dog – Toby’ Op HERRICK 9 by Pte Jess Folkersten RAVC.
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