902nd SFS partners with local K-9 unit for training exercise Published March 29, 2016 By Airman 1st Class Lauren Ely Joint Base San Antonio-Randolph Public Affairs JOINT BASE SAN ANTONIO-RANDOLPH, Texas -- The 902nd Security Forces Squadron here welcomed the Comal County Sheriff’s Department K-9 unit for a military working dog training exercise Monday outside the JBSA-Randolph MWD kennel. The exercise marked the first time in three years since the 902nd SFS has partnered with a local police department for training with MWDs, said Tech. Sgt. Matthew Phillips, 902nd SFS kennel master. Phillips said the new training areas, the exposure to different scents of narcotics and explosives and allowing both departments to become familiar with each other’s operating procedures were equally beneficial factors for both organizations in forming a partnership. “When we do joint training it is not just for the dogs, but for the handlers too,” said Phillips. “Everyone coming together to share their experiences and training techniques makes for an excellent training environment.” The training exercise was designed to provide practice for dog handlers and their dogs in finding explosives in a recreational vehicle lot, as well as narcotics in an open field. Currently the CCSD K-9 unit is training its dogs to work in county courthouses and in schools to detect various explosives, said Deputy Duane Buethe, CCSD K-9 unit corporal in charge. “Some of the explosives that I need to make sure the dog will find, only the military has,” said Buethe. “The military brings a lot of information back from foreign conflicts that we’re not going to have experience with. When they come back they share those things with us, and it helps us understand, ‘Well that could be done here,’ and so we use those things to help our program.” For the next partnered training exercise, Phillips said the 902nd SFS will go out to work at the CCSD’s training area. “They’ve got different experiences in law enforcement… and with them, they get narcotics all the time,” said Phillips. “If they find narcotics, they can then use it for training, so we can expose our dogs to a lot more on the narcotics side and to new training areas off base.” The 902nd SFS is home to six MWDs, with explosives and narcotics training as part of their weekly duties. Phillips said each dog has a training schedule and is “hitting odor” twice a week, as well as performing force protection and working on obedience with their respective handler. The dogs are also dual certified to perform bite work with handlers and part of their training schedule can also include practice in finding people.