Prepper Dogs- Retreat and Home Security Dogs.
Prepper Dogs- Retreat and Home Security Dogs.
The recent news cycle has had many preppers worried about gun control issues. Other preppers are considering adding redundancy into their defense plan. One great solution to security redundancy is a dog trained for home defense. There are several advantages to having a dog trained for home protection. The obvious in the gun control conversation is that they are not likely to be banned by Obama and Feinstein. New York and Illinois are planning sweeping reforms in gun laws. Many Prepper Recon readers are located in countries that have zero tolerance for firearms such as Britain and Australia. For you, a dog may be your best line of defense.
A second advantage is that dogs in general act as a deterrent. Would be intruders will often pass by a home with a dog in search of a softer target. Third, a well trained dog will act as an alarm system. Well trained dogs will distinguish between a potential threat and a benign presence like a deer or a possum. Forth is companionship. All pet owners know the joy of having a loving animal that is part of the family.
Perhaps the most specialized function that could be filled by a well trained home protection dog is that of a team member in a retreat group. More and more preppers are stepping up there game by forming retreat groups that can share responsibilities in a total or partial collapse scenario. Running security at a retreat typically demands that at least two team members are always pulling a security shift. Even a well maned retreat group will have to dedicate 6 people to security to fill 8 hour shifts. A well trained dog can preserve precious man power that would otherwise be spent on security. After months of patrolling without an incident, the most vigilant team member can lose their proper level of alertness . A well trained dog is always focused. They are always listening with much more sensitive hearing than a human. A dog’s keen sense of smell also alerts them to scents that don’t belong.
To be able to depend on a dog to this level requires very specialized training. Our newest sponsor, K-9 Patriot Services Inc. provides that level of training. They have been providing the animals and training for military service dogs and their handlers in Afghanistan and in Iraq. The dogs have been helping our troops avoid IED’s and find potential threats by detecting explosives and bomb making materials. K-9 Patriot is now branching out and making that same high level of animals and training available to the prepper community.
Steve Gorman, of Patriot K-9 Services, has been training dogs since 1993. He founded Patriot in 2001. A committed stalwart in the industry, he takes an active role in the training of the dogs, handlers, and teams. The firm began by training canines for sale to other security service companies and Government agencies. The first trained dogs Patriot sold went to the firm providing the bomb dog services at the Empire State building in NYC. They additionally have supplied dogs to the New York Stock Exchange and the infamous Rikers Island jail of New York. Over time, Patriot hired its own handlers and began to provide bomb and patrol dog teams as a value added service.
In 2004, the company was contacted about supplying dog teams to the US Army in Afghanistan. Patriot sent 24 trained canine teams to work with the 10th Mountain Division and US Special Forces teams in southern Afghanistan out of the Kandahar Air Field base. The teams searched for explosives on a daily basis and performed missions in the field for nearly two years. They also provided protection, or patrol dog teams as they are known in law enforcement and military terms, to coax unfriendly Taliban from their hiding places and on occasion to apprehend “squirters”, or those needing to be questioned that had decided to run. The Afghanistan experience expanded the firm’s capabilities and offered an opportunity to prove how well the teams could perform in the most austere of conditions under actual combat conditions. On the heels of the Afghanistan assignment the firm was invited by a large Government contractor to supply multiple teams to protect a British base in southern Iraq under a State Department contract where they worked for over a year.
In addition to over 5 dozen bomb and patrol dog teams, Patriot has trained and deployed specialty working dogs for drug enforcement, arson investigation, and field services. Patriot has the experience and resources to train dogs for personal protection along with their new handlers. Many of the dogs they train for protection purposes are wonderful family pets too. The German Shepherd is Gorman’s dog of choice for protection but the Belgian Malinois is also used. Shepherds are loyal to a fault and will lay down their life to protect their family. Gorman said that while the German Shepherd will be loyal to all family members they more often than not attach themselves more closely to one family member.
With the uncertainty in the world today Patriot has shifted its focus from government contracts to training dogs for the individual for home or retreat protection. Patriot is located in north Texas where they train dogs, handlers, and conduct recurrent training for both.
Please take time to check out K-9 Patriot Services today. If you want to add a dog to your retreat team or to your home security plan, K-9 Patriot will provide you with the same standard demanded by US special forces. Dogs and training are also available to local law enforcement departments.
Happy Prepping!
