“vegeta is the good student, the one who wants to do well. I’ve never had to get angry”smiles on the phone Arnaud, instructor instructor at the National Dog Training Center of the Gramat Gendarmerie (CNICG), in the Lot.
A few months ago, it would have been difficult to imagine a military career for this very young Malinois, who was later welcomed into a shelter in Toulon.
Grab a volunteer’s attention
This summer, Vegeta was at the Lagoubran Animal Assistance Foundation shelter from the Isle of Beauty, where, obviously, his health and future were under threat.
Welcomed on the banks of the port, the dog’s very sociable and very playful character caught the attention of a shelter volunteer, who is also a policeman in the metropolis.
“The Malinois is a well-mannered dog that responds to orders”testifies Nicolas who, seeing his potential, decides to present him to the gendarmerie.
We set off again, towards Cuers, where the canine intervention group of the Var is located.
Test Vegeta’s level of play
In September, Vegeta is entrusted to the dogs of the brigade. Objective: to verify the attitudes perceived by the colleague.
The state of health examined, the soldiers then “targeting the dog’s temper”: “his sociability is very important and you have to test his level of play, details one of them. The dog will associate the look of the sought-after material with the look of his toy. It’s all about the game. A dog who is addicted to his toy, like Vegeta was with a stuffed animal, will work well.”
What products are you looking for? Narcotics, weapons, ammunition and banknotes, grouped under the abbreviation “Sambi”. His self-sacrifice”see if he gives up fast or not”it will also be one of the selection criteria.
“We immediately saw that he had potential. In spirit, we tell ourselves these are the kinds of dogs we wish we had,” confides one of Cuersois’ dog handlers, who accompanied him for a month.
Having passed the tests “hands down”, the young Malinois left the Mediterranean coast for the Lot.
Vegeta is now in the hands of Arnaud, trainer instructor at the CNICG in Gramat (near Rocamadour).
“We have three months to tame the dog because we didn’t have them when we were kids. Everything goes through the game, there are no constraints. We make him understand that he has to find (narcotics, weapons, ammunition and tickets)”, explains the conductor, visibly under the spell of the Malinois. “Sometimes he has clown attitudes. He’s very endearing, he likes interacting with humans.”
In short, a good student, now very far from the Lagoubran refuge.
“Wedding Ceremony”
For Vegeta, the next step will be January 4, when the military calls him “the wedding ceremony”.
On this day the dog will be associated with a dog handler in training. Not any one. “You have to find a master who matches the character of the dog. Vegeta isn’t a great character, but he’s not neutral. You can’t associate him with a master who has a strong character”explains Arnaud.
Once the wedding is celebrated, the gendarme will put on his instructor hat, teaching the new couple to get to know each other and work together.
If the two pass the two exams scheduled during the 14-week internship, then for Vegeta it will be the beginning of a career in the gendarmerie… To the great satisfaction of Nicolas, who closely follows the career of his young protégé from Toulon.
Every year, many dogs are tested at the Groupe d’investigation cynophile du Var, in Cuers, or at the Center national d’instruction cynophile (CNICG) in Gramat (Lot) where all the dogs of the gendarmerie are trained, as well as their masters …
Either the dogs are offered by “beaters”, professionals in question, or by individuals, who have detected potential in their animal, or simply have to part with it. Another case, that of a dog from the shelter, as in the case of Vegeta. The Malinois was welcomed in that of Lagoubran, in Toulon. “We are often asked to test dogs. We test 15-20 a year,” puts Cuers in charge of a dog handler. Generally at the time of their “recruitment” they are 10 and 30 months old. Their “engagement” in the gendarmerie lasts from 7 to 9 years.
“To be effective, you need osmosis between the dog and its owner. We work with him throughout his career. We also don’t talk about work. For the dog, it’s a game.”
And once you retire? “Most of us keep them”, entrust a policeman.
