Meet Honorary 1st Class Petty Officer Dolar, the 4-year-old Belgian Malinois who is about to embark on a journey many would be envious of…retirement.
Dolar’s military service began in 2019 when he was just a young pup. He was accepted and assigned to Lackland Air Force Base, Texas for Explosive Detection Training and Patrol Training school where he underwent rigorous training in order to become a military working dog.
Upon graduating, he was stationed at Naval Air Station Pensacola. Unbeknownst to him, this is where he would meet his partner and adopted owner Master-at-Arms 2nd Class Petty Officer Jonathon Koop. From Carlsbad, California, Koop enlisted in 2019 and graduated at the top of his class and earned the coveted position as a handler in 2020. Together they would certify as a team and provide safety and security for over 20,000 military and Department of Defense personnel across four installations over their time together here.
Over the years the team has supported many missions to include to the United Nation General Assembly (New York), Edmund Pettus Bridge March (Selma, Alabama) and the Republican National Convention (Charlotte, North Carolina) protecting individuals like President Joseph Biden, Vice President Kamila Harris, former President Donald Trump and Former Vice President Mike Pence.
Related
Koop describes the rewarding experience of being a handler to these loyal companions.
“We have the best partners that you could possibly ask for [because] you are going to have a partner that is going to trust you with its life.” This trust and confidence was demonstrated over years of responding to incidents.
Military working dogs are often portrayed as confident or intimidating. However, Koop describes Dolar as a happy go lucky dog who likes people. He enjoys pets and playtime as much as any lovable canine.
When a military working dog is retired from active duty service they are no longer in the care of the government and they need a home. Oftentimes the handler will be the first to apply for the adoption. If the handler does not want to or is not able to adopt, the canine will be available for adoption to the public. Koop made the easy decision to apply to adopt Dolar when he learned about his medical retirement.
These days, Dolar looks back fondly on his military service and all the adventures that he had. Although he might miss aspects of his job, he looks forward to a well earned retirement at the Koop household. You can bet that his pup will be enjoying the finer things of what household pet life has to offer.
Related
“We did get him toys; probably too many toys. He's probably overwhelmed by how many toys he has. He’ll chew on them until he gets really tired and falls asleep.” said Koop.
Although Dolar is only a few weeks into his retirement he has done a lot. His most recent hobbies are spending his days visiting the beach, running in fields and his favorite pastime, watching golf on TV. His most recent new food adventure was to get a pup cup, a popular dog treat, for the first time. As for his future plans? Dolar will continue to explore the ins and outs of pet life and the prospect of many vacations. There is even talk of a family vacation to California to see snow. Dolar will be turning 5 in September, so please wish the old man a happy birthday while he enjoys retired life.