Gamecock life for RAAF aeromedics training as war dogs

If there is one job that is arguably more dangerous and far worse paid than that of an Australian army sapper, whose job is to locate and disarm hidden bombs and improvised explosive devices, it is that of their four-legged ammo-sniffing friends, the military working dog. .

And if something goes wrong, and it certainly can, and does, there is an obvious question of what to do with the canine member of the team who, if he survives, is usually seriously injured, along with his two-legged teammate.

That real-world ethical and logistical dilemma is one step closer to being resolved after the Royal Australia Air Force (RAAF) revealed it is now using highly experienced vets to teach canine critical care to medivac teams, so they can care for both dogs and their supervisors can fly out. in the event of an explosion.

It may sound a bit strange, but the bond between Sappers and their working dogs is – as most dog lovers will agree – closer to a family member than a colleague, so it makes sense that the paws are not left behind.

Registered full-time veterinarian Captain Alexandra Blecich is among those teaching medics how to care for injured dogs in the field with the tools at their disposal, while also treating people.

Blecich is part of the 2nd Headquarters Health Brigade and helps military medics learn what medications to use on dogs, how to handle dogs under anesthesia and the best way to place a dog on a stretcher.

Like a lot of preparation for combat scenarios, it’s part training/part science/part improvisation. It turns out that human stretchers aren’t so great for the lowly dog.

“We found that the stretcher configurations were not suitable for a dog,” Blecich said. “The stretcher pole puts pressure on an injured leg, prompting us to improvise with a work table covered with a mat.”

The solution using existing resources is likely to earn praise from the Defense Materiel Organization and Defense Finance.

“This solution eliminated the need to purchase additional equipment,” said Blecich.

But there is some highly customized dog training equipment out there, not least a full-size mannequin of a dog that behaves in the same way as an injured animal.

“The mannequin is a great training tool for rehearsals. If you don’t apply the dog-specific tourniquet properly, the dog will continue to bleed,” Blecich said.

“Captain Blecich is believed to be the first veterinary officer to participate in a Military Critical Aeromedical Evacuation Team (MCAT) scenario at RAAF Base Amberley, where she worked with personnel from the Health Operational Conversion Unit and 3 Aeromedical Medical Evacuation Squadron,” Defense said.

In previous operations, Australia appears to have fallen back on military vets from other allies to provide critical care for dogs, whose intensive care teams had veterinary training.

Group Captain David Cooksley, Clinical Director for Emergency and Aeromedical Evacuation at Headquarters Health Reserves, became interested in caring for dogs after observing that other countries were taking their dogs with their troops, and that “their physicians were expected to they provided care and transport for wounded dogs on the battlefield,” Defense said.

“I was inspired to learn how to care for dogs as a human caregiver and to begin developing our pre-veterinary care for military working dogs and aeromedical evacuation capability,” Cooksley said.

“These are valuable members and we have a legal and moral responsibility to provide them with appropriate medical support.”

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