| ABOUT OUR K-9 UNIT |
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» Training of dogs About The IBFICU The IBFICU K-9 unit has already aided the I.D.F. in preventing 4 separate terrorist attacks and have responded to more than 10 terror attacks in Israel. The IBFICU maintains a service kennel in Kfar Tapuach Israel, housing
20 dogs locally. An additional wing is under construction. 30 sentry
guard dogs, patrol dogs and home protection dogs have already been
placed in needy border towns. Training of Dogs Bomb sniffers - many terrorist bombings could be avoided if bombs were detected early by specially trained bomb sniffing dogs. One such attack occurred on June 11th 2003, when 16 Jews were killed and 73 were injured by an Arab suicide bomber who entered a bus. One of our K-9's and handlers standing at the bus stop could have smelled the explosives and prevented the terrorist from entering the bus. The cost to buy and train a bomb sniffing dog and a handler is approximately $10,000. The procedure takes approximately 4 months. The IBFICU hopes to allocate bomb sniffing dogs and handlers to patrol busy central bus stations in major Israeli cities. Click (Donate) to help sponsor a Bomb Sniffer. Tracking dogs - on Friday night, March 7th 2003, Rabbi Eli and Dina Horrowitz were brutally murdered while sitting at home enjoying Shabbat dinner. Good tracking dogs could have prevented this tragedy. The terrorist, cut through an electronic fence that signaled to the town security that they had penetrated Kiryat Arba. The terrorist, realizing that they would be discovered replaced the cut out section of the fence and hid. The Kiryat Arba Guard searched the area, and finding nothing, returned to his patrol. The terrorist waited about a half an hour and then crawled back through the hole, hidden by bushes and tress and then walked right into the town.... A good tracking dog would have led its handler straight to the hiding terrorist. The tracking dog is trained to follow foot prints, sniff people or to follow the scent of an article which may have been left on scene. The tracking dog can be a tremendous enhancement to sophisticated censors and electronic fences. Because once the terrorist trips through or sets off any kind of signal in a specific zone the dog can then be brought to that zone to track the terrorist's present whereabouts. The expensive technology can only indicate where the penetration began. A tracking dog can lead you from the point of entry to the present hiding position of the terrorist. Naturally, most Yeshuvim lack the sophisticated censors and electronic fences. Tracking dogs would be brought in anytime a new hole in the fence is spotted, or when people report suspicious sounds or movement. The tracking dog is the most expensive dog we maintain on our team.
The cost of purchasing and training a good tracking dog and its
handler can easily exceed $10,000. the training takes at least 4
months. We are currently looking for sponsors to acquire 2 new tracking
dogs. Patrol dogs - Arab terrorists who lay in ambush to attack soldiers
or to enter Jewish towns could be detected with the use of good
patrol dogs to sniff them out. Trained service dogs have the ability
to sniff, see and hear terrorists better than the most sophisticated
surveillance and night vision equipment. On October '03, 3 soldiers
from the elite Duchifat unit were ambushed, murdered and then had
their weapons stolen by three terrorists near the village of Ein
Yabrud, near Ofra. There was a fourth soldier who was also injured.
The three terrorists hid behind a pile of rocks, in darkness, as
the four I.D.F. soldiers passed them by. After the soldiers passed,
the three terrorists shot them in their backs. A good patrol dog
would have alerted to the terrorists hiding only a few yards away
and would have lessened the element of surprise on the soldiers.
An aggressive patrol dog with good bite skills could also have attacked
the source of fire. The three terrorists would then have had to
deal with four soldiers and an attack dog responding earlier to
their surprise attack. The purchase and training of a patrol dog
and its handler costs approximately $6,000 and takes approximately
2 months. Hostage rescue dogs - one of the goals of the IBFICU is to train
and station one hostage rescue dog and handler on every emergency
response team in small towns throughout Israel. The emergency response
teams are the first responders to Arab terrorist situations such
as terrorists barricaded in a house with hostages. Modern day Arab
terrorists seek to execute their hostages as quickly as they can
find them. For this reason the emergency response teams try and
break into the homes and initiate contact with the terrorists before
they can complete their bloody massacre. In most cases the courageous
chief of the response team or the first I.D.F. soldiers to penetrate
the home are killed by the initial burst of gunfire from the Arab
terrorists, waiting in the home. Why should soldiers or response
team heroes be the first to enter into the barricaded house? Trained
pairs of hostage rescue dogs can divert the first wave of terrorist
fire and enable the response team or soldiers to immediately follow
behind them and together subdue the terrorists. The dog can run
as fast as 35 kilometers an hour, running low and close to the ground,
and attack the source of fire very effectively. The purchase and
training of a hostage rescue dog and its handler costs approximately
$7,000 and takes approximately 3 months to train. On vehicle response dog - the on vehicle response dog rides with
its handler on the back of an open patrol vehicle or jeep. The dog
is trained to jump off the vehicle and respond to the source of
attack. Within seconds the trained vehicle response dog will be
neutralizing the terrorist sniper. The purchase and training of
the dog and handler costs $5,000 and takes approximately 45 days. Sentry guard dogs - On October 24th 2003, three soldiers were killed
in Netzarim. In darkness and through thick fog 2 armed terrorists
cut through an electronic fence, yards away from I.D.F. guards,
guard tower, tank and the most advanced I.D.F. surveillance equipment.
. A sentry guard dog, stationed by that vulnerable area of the fence
easily could have detected those terrorists before they carried
out their carnage. Sentry guard dogs are used to stand guard with
their handler at a stationary guard booth or position. These dogs
are trained to give early warning of terrorists approaching the
position. The dogs superior ability to see, sniff and hear eliminate
the surprise edge that the terrorist might have had. A basic sentry
guard dog can be acquired and trained together with its handler
for $4,000, within 45 days. Home protection dog - The IBFICU also maintains a special
project to place guard dogs with families who live near the borders
of vulnerable Israeli towns. These dogs can offer the needed alert
to their newly adoptive families before the terrorists get too close.
These dogs are friendly with their new family and every family is
given a short course on how to properly maintain and care for the
pet/guards. These dogs will bark and awaken the family when strangers
approach. And if necessary they can attack those who threaten their
new family. These dogs are more affordable, we often rescue these
dogs from animal shelters, before these homeless dogs are put to
death. The cost of adoption, transportation, basic training and
installation in their new home costs approximately $1,500. The training procedure of the handlers All IBFICU handlers undergo the appropriate course for the type
of specialized work they will be expected to implement. A tracking
or a bomb-sniffing dog handler will undergo a rigorous 3-4 month
course. Breeding of Dogs The IBFICU has commenced a breeding program; the first of its kind for security service dogs in Israel. Zara, one of our Mallanois is pregnant. We have also started acquiring pups from Alaska and Holland. A well - rounded program requires adult, young and breeding dogs. Adult mature service dogs are ready for action and can be used immediately. Pups and younger dogs undergoing training can soon enter into the K-9 service force more adaptable to our unique needs. And the breeding of our own service dogs can help cut down costs. Those dogs that will be deemed unfit for service can still be sold to help sustain IBFICU costs or be placed as family protection dogs in border towns. The breeding program offers to produce the next line of Israeli K-9 defenders, of the future.
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