Quote: Linda Bransgrove

Were you told about Fama's background when you got her? I'm sure your background in training dogs helped a lot when working to get her over her issues. Do the other handlers have dog training backgrounds? Do the handlers do much training of the dogs or are the dogs ready to go when you get them?

The only thing I was told of Fama before I got her was that she was a bitch Heath did give her to me because of my background. It was in later conversations with the trainers, and her previous handler, that I learned some of her history. It wasn't really important to me anyways. I tend to make my own opinions of a dog based on their current behavior. I find that preconceived notions of temperament and behavior are usually wrong anyhow.

Most of the handlers had very little, if any, training experience. Some of them had never owned a dog. Most of the dogs know odor, sit, and stay, and they are young. Any additional training is up to the handler. We did some OB sessions during school, but concentrated much more on finding bombs. Most of my OB with Fama was after school and on the weekends. The regular military police MWDs, that come from Lackland, have a lot more OB on them before they deploy, because they are also patrol dogs, so they need the control. OB is part of a patrol dog's certification process.

Throughout school, I knew what was up with Fama and her aggressiveness, but I didn't have the time to address it properly because she was so spun up all the time. It was impossible to get her to learn to calm down when everywhere we went, she was stressed, from riding on the back of a truck 2-3 times a day with 7 other dogs, and then hanging out in her crate for hours with people and dogs in the vicinity, working inside her threshold. As soon as we got out on our own, things started changing pretty quick.

I'm really surprised that handlers can have so little dog experience. Does that cause problems?

Your story is even better since you took a "misfit" dog & turned her into a star!

Only 8 out of the original 20 of us made it down range with our dogs, and that is mostly due to the handlers not being able to do the job. Consistency across a broad spectrum of venues is usually the hardest to achieve. The team may be great at route clearance, open areas, and buildings, but struggle on vehicles, so they fail. As bomb dog teams, we can not afford to be good. We have to be as close to perfect as our limitations as humans and dogs allow.

Imagine, as a new handler with no idea of the sport, taking a dog from a BH to SchH I in 3 months.

Misfit ***LOL*** that's a nice way to put it Most of the trainers didn't use Fama's name. They called her the C-word. We all knew who they meant.

^^^
LMAO!!!!

My dad called Logan "Dogzilla" when I got him. He said, "I hate that THING, you didn't have to get Dogzilla did you?!!!"...but that's not so bad I guess. LOL

Hey, David... "BUMP" (hint,hint).

LOL... patience

I have been trying to get cleared from the Army and back home. I will have some time this weekend, and I have the next 3 episodes mapped out in my head.

Just thought I'd throw something out there with all this talk of finding publishers - You can put an ebook together on your own and sell it through different established platforms (Amazon, iTunes, etc). All you'd need to find then is an editor.

I know it's not a "real" book, but it's a big, expanding market and success in that platform could also be very helpful in getting your work into real book form.

I've had a bit of experience with electronic publishing over the past year and a half and have had enough success with it to realize that there is a lot of potential in that format. Get your work out there, have it reviewed by a few well respected dog people, some well read dog blogs and people wil eat it up. Your writing is great and the story is incredbly engaging and unique.

 Quote: David Winners

I will have some time this weekend, and I have the next 3 episodes mapped out in my head.

Is it the weekend yet?

Said in the whiny child like voice of the kid in the back seat on a long drive. "Are we there yet?"

You guys stop bumping, I keep thinking the next chapter is in!

I know...

Duane's bump had me all excited this morning. I made a special coffee, got all nestled in my chair, ready to get swept into Fama's world and there's Duane, whining along with the rest of us.

Maybe we'll get a Saturday night special. Mind you, getting to know David's anticipation building techniques we're probably looking at a Sunday morning spectacular.

Prove me wrong David!!! Prove me wrong.