High-Tech Canine Flak Jacket Lets Tactical Dogs Operate Far from Handlers

Ok this is cool. I love working dogs.

That seems messed up to me.. We want to send the dog because it is to unsafe for a person to work in, but hey kill the dog, no one cares.

yeah... something about people being human and dogs not. i don't know. o_O

Yes considering that these dogs do not make the choice to take the risks that we humans place them in, we should at least protect them to the best of our ability.

www.buddiespetholidays.co.uk

To Azorus - When someone kills or injures a working dog someone cares. In most domestic places it is a felony just to strike one during an arrest. Shoot or stab one and it is treated the same as if it were a human cop. And if you go into a military battlefield and hurt a dog you better get out of there immediately or his team members will kill you on the spot, same as if you attacked another human soldier. They will definately risk their lives to defend and protect a K-9 team member.

Even in an urban S&R operation, body armor could help the dogs out- some of those wrecked cityscapes are nasty, to the point that even humans doing the rescuing don't want to be there, and wear basic protective gear. The canines should get the same consideration. Working dogs face all kinds of situations, not just military and policing.

I agree with the opening statement in the article which describes the need for canine body armor use in protecting the financial cost of training the dog. However, the human-dog attachment mentioned in the rest of the article is the key topic.

Wither you believe, or not, that dogs have choice as to what they are used for; dogs are pack animals. Dogs will stay with and obey their pack leader doing what ever is asked of them no matter if it’s to defend their young from a bear attack or determine that there is a 228kg bomb wired to a cell phone. Dogs, if treated with kindness, will be a loyal friend and will be in pain when separated from their owner/pack. They will follow them into hell itself.

I feel no pity for a service dog, but rather respect and admiration for them. Similar to how I see their handlers, they are patriots and protectors. I am thankful that someone has come up with an armor that gives these dogs a better chance of coming home.

Respectfully,
Eugine McAnical

P.S. The camera is a neat option, I wonder what the dog is thinking when he hears the disembodied voice of its handler giving instructions.

With all the money spent on researching and manufacturing why not built an unmanned droid or probe? Dogs are very intelligent creatures and can do better than being testers of live or bogus mines.

Regards,
Sherwin Chen
www.hipetusa.com

I think it would be better to use unmanned probe to do dangerous work like searching for live mines or bombs. Dogs should not be killed like that

www.hipetusa.com

vtsai/bisleshan, you'll be happy to know that we tried!

www.popsci.com/technology/article/2010-10/after-19-billion-spent-six-years-pentagon-realizes-best-bomb-detector-dog

I understand you that think that our ethical standing in using dogs in the high risk setting is tenuous. You are absolutely right to think that. It's tenuous every day, and some days much more than others.

There are things to think about though, such as the fact that may of the specific breeds here were bred for these exact types of high risk companion role long ago. For the males, this is what they are inside, whether we train and use those skills or not.

Many dog breeds have an innate need to be able to give back to their human partners. Dogs don't just give in action, but also of themselves. If the breed was created to hunt men, control prisoners, guard, herd, or rescue; then that is still the nature of the represented alpha dogs in our services.

You want to see job satisfaction at work? Go down to your local military base and take a peek at the magnificent work of self pride there in the one that's top dog on that base.