After 45 and a half years, US Marine Corps Military Working Dog (aka K-9) program manager Bill Childress, is retiring for the second time. With 25 and a half years’ service as an active-duty Marine, Bill spent the last few years of that time as a Master Gunnery Sergeant, serving as program manager for the K-9 program. “K-9 wasn’t the original plan for me”, explains Bill. “I was going to do an assignment involving military police training but was swapped into K-9 at the last minute. I’d never been a dog handler, so I was starting from scratch.”

When Bill retired from the Marine Corps, he was able to continue his role as program manager in a civilian capacity, working out of the Pentagon.

Bill is currently planning a move from D.C to South Carolina – a move that will punctuate his retirement. Retirement will be a stark change of pace for Bill: “I have about 100 books to read and so many movies stacked up to see”, he tells us, with a smile in his voice. Nevertheless, before he settles into the first page of his next chapter, Bill spoke to US War Dogs about his astonishing career in K-9; his achievements, memories and his last impressions of being the guardian of the guardians of the night.

Before we talk about the last 25 years as program manager, Bill makes his first point emphatically. “None of this was just about me. Everything was a team effort. The staff, handlers, trainers, and kennel masters within the Marine Corps were the driving force. I was just their voice to help them get what they need.”

Bill’s humility and respect for his military peers in the Marine Corps shines through at every turn. We were keen to learn what Bill was most proud of, as he looked back on his role and achievements. “Actually, one of my biggest sources of pride actually happened fairly recently”, recalls Bill. “Being based out of the Pentagon, one can reflect on what an extraordinary place it is. Yes, it’s an office building with over 24,000 employees, but it is also a museum. Its halls and corridors are filled with exhibits and information about a multitude of different events that have connections to the place.

“I wanted the US Marine Corps K-9 program represented too, so I lobbied for a display to be installed inside the Pentagon, to showcase the incredible heritage, capabilities and teams that made up one of the most elite K-9 forces in the world.”

The display is a memorial and exhibit to all USMC handlers, past, present and future. “I felt a huge sense of pride the day it was unveiled. I still do.”

20-Year War

  Childress was at the helm of the Marine Corps’ K-9 capabilities when the War on Terror began. A huge upsurge in the demand for dog teams in Iraq and Afghanistan as the US Military adapted its requirements and skills to meet the threat faced. There were 120 K-9 personnel in the USMC in 1999, swelling to 450 by 2009, in support of the war effort. Such an explosion in activity that required Bill to react swiftly and decisively to make sure his teams had everything they needed to be successful.

Before we talked about the growth, restructuring and refocusing of the Marine Corps to meet the demands of Operation Iraqi Freedom and Operation Enduring Freedom, Bill recalls the moment it all started.

I was working at the Pentagon on 9/11 and my day started as usual. I got to the office around 05:30 to prepare for my attendance to a funeral at Arlington National Cemetery at 10:00. At 09:30, a car picked me up for the short trip.

Around two minutes later, Flight 77 hit the Western Façade of the Pentagon – the area where Bill’s office was situated. “I remember thinking ‘am I the only survivor from my office’. As I looked at the Pentagon, I wondered if anybody in my office had perished, but miraculously, nobody in our office was hurt.”

It didn’t take long for the ripple effects from that fateful day in our history to hit the Marine Corps.

“Up until that point, K-9 had a law enforcement mandate, so when boots hit the ground in Iraq, our focus quickly shifted to mission-specific support in a dangerous and frenetic war zone.”

Training and shared knowledge was everything, for all branches of the services. Live intelligence would come back on situations that the handlers were facing. We needed a way to ready our handlers and their dogs to face those threats, head on.

In 2004, the specialized search dog (SSD) capability developed to match the threat that coalition troops were facing: IEDs. Bill developed a relationship with some outside assistance to build US expertise and learn from those who were already implementing these tactics. Later that year, combat tracking dogs were also brought back into the mix - having last been used in Vietnam – to help track back to the enemy in combat situations.

“We were sending teams to Iraq and Afghanistan for a mission that was completely new to them. We needed to better equip them for the threats that they were facing – we had to make a significant move.”

That move came in 2005 when Yuma Proving Ground opened its doors with the Military Working Dog Team Deployment Training Course (MWDTDTC). “Yuma was one of our most important training facilities”, notes Bill. The DoD Military Working Dog Training School had a training site that became anall-service to provide dog teams with the best real-world experience of what life was like out in theatre.

“Manoeuvring forces from every branch of service had to know how we do business. Yuma provided us with everything we needed to prepare troops, from the desert heat and terrain to live fire and explosions, local scent profiles and search drills, in line with the reports that were coming straight back from the front line.”

Facilitated by Marine Corps trainers, the three-week course at Yuma Proving Ground gave dog handlers and their MWDs dessert acclimatisation, exposure to various type of explosives, gunfire that prepared the dogs for theatre.

And as trainers cycled out, those fresh from the fight came to take their place, bringing with them the hard-fought knowledge of their deployments with them.

Bill initiated the idea for Yuma Proving Ground and obtained the funds needed to get it up and running. “It really paid dividends. We were in the business of saving lives and Yuma did just that. That whole project is something I look back on with immense pride.”

Keeping House

   One of Bill’s other triumphs came in the form of a universal management system that centralize data for the program. The Working Dog Management System (WDMS) provided a worldwide, real-time cradle-to-grave database of every dog in the Corps; their training, veterinary records, etc.. “Not only did the system provide quicker and easier ways to run off reports to showcase our unit at a glance, it also provided a one-time data entry that centralized the data so that any team within the unit could see what was going on in K-9 across the Corps.

“Even 18 years later, the system is still being refined and improved, but having a starting point to build on was a huge deal for K-9. The wider DoD Military Working Dog program rolled it out across all branches of services too, which was a real testament to its success.” 

Bill also helped to write the 700-page MWD manual – standardizing every facet of life in Marine Corps K-9 from training, requirements for proper kennel management and every procedure needed to ensure the correct husbandry of a working dog. “The knowledge and skill was all there – we just needed to harness it and pull it all together. The manual is a working document and will continue to be refined, but we made a good start, I think.”

Mission Capable Assets

  Another pivotal change that Bill brought into being was to assign permanent Marine Corps dog teams to the presidential helicopter squadron. “We were sending dog teams on temporary assignments to provide protection capabilities to the president and visiting dignitaries but by creating a permanent unit, we freed up support in other areas that saved money on those temporary assignment costs.”

Bill spearheaded the USMC’s efforts in K-9 and as such, developed it into a world class program. This came because of a number of tactical decisions made by Bill to enhance the program, with emphasis on advanced, mission-specific training.

Between 2007-2009, the Marine K-9 program restructured by adding three platoons with three separate objectives, meaning that they could train and deploy as specialists. The three platoons were based in Okinawa, Japan, Camp Lejeune, North Carolina and Camp Pendleton, California. “This really increased our number of dogs and our capabilities by three. Our forces would deploy and then began to request for more K-9 support because of how successful the dogs were against the IED threat.

“It helped us cycle out handlers and dogs; ensured we had all the necessary deploying equipment needed and took the pressure off the bases and stations that were supporting the war effort. We needed to protect those bases and stations and separate out the deployment pipeline to the battalions.”

The battalions have distinct responsibilities which also meant that training focuses could be honed and refined. “The cycle of training, deploying and bringing troops back for rest & relaxation (R&R) was constant, so splitting out into three battalions really met a demand. We grew and increased the number of dog teams over time – right up until our withdrawal from Afghanistan.”

Kennel Care

  Established around 1999 was the annual kennel masters’ conference, bringing subject matter experts together to help solve problems and tackle issues as a collective program. “We really didn’t have the level of communications that we do today, back then. Technology was scant and it quickly became apparent that we needed to meet up as a team to discuss things and get more ideas for the development of courses of actions on the issues.”

Kennel masters from across the Corps gathered to discuss procedural issues and shared best practice. Speakers would address topics on training, new equipment and shared knowledge on all aspects of K-9. “It paid huge dividends” comments Bill. That sharing of knowledge really was absent before then. I think this is where my non-K-9 background became an asset – I was able to bring a different perspective to the table, which unlocked a whole lot of potential from within the program.”

The success of the annual event prompted the US Army to follow suit and the kennel masters’ conference continues to be a key part of the USMC calendar of events today.

 Highs and Lows

“Every job has its downsides” notes Bill cheerfully as we ask him about the hardest parts of his job. “I was lucky to have a great boss that understood what K-9 could bring to the table, but sometimes, the job of educating non-K-9 personnel can be tough. It was my job to brief them on what we needed and wanted as a program and that can be difficult at times.”

The hard parts of the role were outweighed by the rewards. “For me, it was all about taking care of the troops. I did everything I could for them. These guys and girls are out there doing the job and it was the least I could do to be there for them. It’s what leadership is all about.”

Bill reflects with immense pride, on the people he has worked with along the way: “The handlers, trainers, kennel masters and staff are really the ones that make things happen. I constantly relied on them to tell me the best way to tackle an issue and they never let me down. 

“I feel blessed to have represented some of the finest Marines (military and civilian) while assigned at the Pentagon for the last 25 years. I really enjoyed my career as a Marine and feel truly honored to have served the Corps for 45 and a half years. The people really make it and without them, I wouldn’t have had such a wonderful job.”

Changes

As Bill looks to his retirement, he acknowledges the huge changes that are coming his way. “My days have been long for 25 years. I would get up at 0330 and not get home until 1930, so I am interested to see how my body adjusts to some slower starts. I have travelled a lot but my wife Ann has been an incredible supporter and has sacrificed a lot for this job for the past 41 years. This is her time now. She’s in charge and I am ok with that.



“I might even have time to have a dog of my own now. K-9 leads the way that really does grow on you!”