The Defense Department’s canine training program at Joint Base San Antonio-Lackland is portrayed by the Pentagon as the best of the best, turning out dogs trained like soldiers to patrol airports, sniff out drugs and detect explosives for the military and a variety of federal and state agencies.
But a new report from the Pentagon inspector general’s office paints a different picture, citing a long list of problems in the program from 2021 to 2024, including poor and unsanitary kennel conditions, mold in some facilities, lack of staffing, lack of proper exercise time for some dogs, heat-related injuries —and the deaths of four animals at the San Antonio facility.
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