Fort Carson honors service dogs in 5k race
(COLORADO SPRINGS) — On Saturday, Mar. 23, Fort Carson honored service dogs and their handlers by hosting their annual “War Memorial 5k” run.
Service dogs play a crucial role in supporting our troops and protecting our nation, which is why Fort Carson honors them each year.
“We want to make sure that we get the love to man’s best friend. So today’s event is for the dogs because they are also soldiers,” says Devon Douglas, Director of Marketing at Fort Carson.
It’s important to honor all service members, including the ones with four legs.
“The dogs need to see the canines do the same work as our service members which is defending our installation and our nation,” says Douglas.
The annual event is called the “War Memorial 5k” and families gather to participate. They offer a one-mile ‘fun run’ for anyone not up for the 5k.
This year more than 250 runners and 100 service animals participated in the event.
“We have pup cups, we have dog treats, we have food trucks for the adults, but we want to make sure that the dogs are here to have fun,” says Douglas.
“I believe the role of the service dog is not only to as I say, be mandatory, but also to do the job of a soldier, to protect our nation, to protect us as we go on deployment,” said Douglas.
The service dogs are trained for specific jobs, from detecting explosives to search and rescue missions and protecting their handlers. Their work is invaluable.
“So our canines, they sniff out danger, they can find the danger, and they respond to it in a way that when they identify the service member, they know that something is going on and we can take care of that right away,” Douglas added.
He also says it is important to remember to ask the handler before petting any service animals.
“So if a person says it’s okay, then you can love the furry friend as much as you want to, and if not, you do this thing for this service,” said Douglas.
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