Base contest lets AF, civilian K-9 officers connect

  • Published
  • By Argen Duncan
  • Nucleus Editor
Gunshots ring out, and a working dog races across the softball field, jumps on the suspect and refuses to release the bite even as the man struggles. But then, a second suspect charges the dog handler, who calls the canine to help.


No one's actually in danger, however. The gun wasn't firing anything, and the "suspects" were decoys during the third annual 377th Security Forces Squadron Kirtland Air Force Base K-9 Competition.


Kennel master Tech. Sgt. Felipe Alvarado said eight dog-handler teams from Kirtland and eight from the New Mexico Corrections Department participated. In past years, the event has drawn more than 40 teams, but required training for area police conflicted with the competition this time.


Alvarado said the contest, part of the base celebration of Police Week, is meant to bring canine officers together. It involves agility obstacles, obedience tests and scenarios to handle.


Corrections Department dog handler Ed Unis was participating with his 5-year-old Belgian Malinois, Rudy. He hoped to add another trophy to the collection of five he and Rudy won in five previous competitions.


"For us, it's a lot of good training," Unis said. "It's good to network."


Corrections Department dog teams often work with the New Mexico State Police and the U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency, he said. Unis expects to support Kirtland Security Forces for the first time next month, doing vehicle searches and demonstrations during the air show.


That teamwork makes networking especially important.


The family canine handlers build among each other is phenomenal, Unis said. The agencies have a lot of differences in their jobs, but a lot of commonalities, too.


"We're all out for the same reason: Keep everybody safe," Unis said.


This year, Kirtland's competition honors Marine dog handlers Cpl. David Sonka and Staff Sgt. Christopher Diaz, who were killed in action in 2013 and 2011, respectively. Sonka's dog, Flex, was killed with him.


At the end of the competition Wednesday, the Rocky Mountain Dawgs Project was scheduled to provide lunch to the competitors, an annual tradition. Kevin Sonka, Cpl. Sonka's father, runs the organization to provide free meals for dog handlers, asking only that they keep his son's memory alive, Alvarado said.


A Police Week memorial retreat is set for 4 p.m. today at Hardin Field to honor Air Force Office of Special Investigations and Security Forces officers killed since the global war on terror began, as well as fallen officers from local law enforcement agencies.