Pet cemetery honors K-9 military heroes

A game of catch, a bowl of kibble and the undying loyalty of their handlers is the only pay police and military dogs receive for their service.In recognition of National Pet Memorial Day, the Lohman family unveiled a special memorial Friday to these four-legged heroes at its pet cemetery at Daytona Memorial Park, as bloodhounds bayed, shepherds barked and retrievers silently wagged their tails. The breeds of working police dogs came from across three counties.

Ralph Orlando, vice president of the Obedience Club of Daytona, started raising money for an organization called Support Military Working Dogs, which provides cooling vests and other protective gear to help the animals burdened with working in Iraq and Afghanistan’s extreme conditions to support U.S. forces. Not long after, he suggested to the Lohmans that they dedicate a memorial to these special dogs.

“These dogs deserve recognition,” Orlando said.

Lee Conger, a retired naval officer of 21 years and military law enforcement K-9 trainer for the past 10 years, said the dogs are truly a blessing.

“My dad fought in Vietnam, and he told me about a patrol they were on,” said the trainer who traveled from Jacksonville for the unveiling of the memorial. “They almost walked into an ambush and would have if it wasn’t for the K-9 unit alerting them. This was before he met my mother so, in a way, I owe my whole existence to these dogs.”

Besides honored dogs and handlers, about 150 people — some with their own dogs — came out to show their support.

“We just want to pay our respect to the officers and dogs who serve us,” said Corey Dickinson with his dog Clark. “We just wanted to be here for this.”

Lexy Ross, of Port Orange, had her hands full with Lily Lou, a spaniel mix, Marlin, a red-nose pitbull, and Jefferson, a pomeranian with a close-cropped hairdo.

“Of course I love dogs,” she said. “I think it’s great that everyone is out to honor them.”

Volusia County Sheriff Ben Johnson mentioned some of the county’s first working police dogs — including Dixie, whose claim to fame was catching “the naked rapist,” and using her own special tools to ensure he’d never rape again.

Over the years, some of these working dogs have lost their lives to heat exhaustion, gunshot wounds and car crashes, Johnson said.

New Smyrna Beach officer Roy L. Nelson Jr., 36, and his dog, Ceasar, are the only K-9 team to have lost their lives in the line of duty. On Aug. 13, 2005, a car pulled out in front of them, Cmdr. Bill Drossman said.

“Roy Nelson dedicated his heart and soul to being a K-9 handler,” he said. “There is no stronger love and commitment than that of dog and handler. These dogs are warriors and always faithful.”

Conger said before the memorial that he didn’t think to bring flowers to honor his first dog, an orange sable German shepherd named Bodo.

“(Bodo) was already retired — 16 years old — and still training me,” Conger said. “I think I was his last handler and he taught me a lot.”

The best thing about him, Conger said, was his sense of humor.

“Oh, he had a sense of humor,” he said. “We were at Lackland (Air Force Base in Texas) and I put some water down for him in his bowl. He picked up my canteen and I told him to put it down. He picked it up again, and this time when I told him to put it down he tossed it about 15 feet away from me. To me, that’s a sense of humor.”

Dogs of war

The U.S. military has used working dogs since the Revolutionary War when they were used as pack animals.

· Dogs in World War I were used to kill rats in the trenches.

· In World War II more than 10,000 dogs acted as sentries, scouts, messengers and mine detectors.

· Hundreds of dogs serve with U.S. forces in Iraq and Afghanistan as patrol dogs and explosives and drug detectors. Another 2,000 or so provide similar services at U.S. bases and operating posts around the world.

· Before Sept. 11, 2001, security forces trained about 200 dogs a year for the Defense Department, but that number is up to more than 500, with most being trained as sentries and bomb-sniffers.

SOURCE: American Forces Press Service

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