Kuno, the Belgian Malinois who has completed two Afghanistan tours, is set to receive the prestigious Dickin Medal—the animals' Victoria Cross—for his heroic service.
The four-year-old canine, retired and rehomed, is set to receive the honor from the People's Dispensary for Sick Animals (PDSA) in a virtual ceremony in November this year.
️Retired military dog Kuno will receive the @PDSA_HQ Dickin Medal for valour - the animal's Victory Cross - after he was wounded while tackling Al Qaeda insurgents. Kuno's heroic actions saved the lives of British Forces personnel. Find out more here: https://t.co/TbUwDRIWJs — Ministry of Defence (@DefenceHQ) August 29, 2020
Active Duty and Life After Service
Kuno is a military dog trained in the detection of explosives and weapons and is also capable of disabling threats. Together with his handler, the Belgian Malinois was deployed to serve with the British Special Boat Service (SBS) in a night raid mission against al-Qaeda members in Afghanistan last year.
Met with hostility, the SBS team was pinned down under machine-gun fire and grenade explosions. Kuno broke the impasse, equipped with a pair of night-vision goggles, as he charged through the blasts and gunfire to tackle the gunman. The attack allowed the rest of the team to advance, successfully completing the mission thanks to Kuno's efforts.
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However, his heroism was not without cost. The military dog received gunshot wounds in both of his hind legs, receiving medical care on the way to safety. His injuries included a bullet that narrowly missed one of his main arteries, requiring several operations to save him before further treating him back in the UK.
The injuries Kuno received from the Afghanistan mission would ultimately cost him a part of one of his rear paws to prevent further infection. He later received extensive reconstructive surgery - turning Kuno into the first UK military dog to receive custom-made prosthetics.
He also received a lengthy rehabilitation program to help his nerves and muscles recover. BBC also reports that Kuno especially enjoyed his hydrotherapy treadmill sessions.
"Without Kuno, the course of this operation could have been very different, and it's clear he saved the lives of British personnel that day," UK Defense Secretary Ben Wallace said.
The Science Behind Positive Training for Dogs
Dogs have accompanied humans for as early as 20,000 to 40,000 years ago. Ways of training dogs have differed, sparking debates. However, scientific studies suggest that positive reinforcement and training methods are the best way to go about it.
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A 2014 study led by researchers from the Anthrozoology Institute at the University of Bristol's Department of Clinical Veterinary Science inquired about dog training methods. They surveyed 364 dog owners through a questionnaire that examines their dog training methods on essential tasks. The dog owners were then asked to assess whether their dogs showed any of the 16 problematic behaviors specified by the researchers.
The study revealed that the number of problems, as reported by their owners, increased in relation to how many tasks that dog had to do via punishment-based methods but not receiving treats for accomplishing the tasks. In conclusion, the researchers "suggest that positive training methods may be more useful to the pet-owning community."
Even the American Veterinary Society of Animal Behavior, through a 2014 recommended article, promotes positive training. Defined as "the addition of something in proximity to a behavior that results in an increased probability of a dog showing that behavior again in the future," positive training is often associated with giving dogs "treats" in exchange for doing what is asked of them.
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