Zara’s a good girl

Zara has all the right traits of a Military Working Dog.

SHE is a hard worker, has a very good nature and possesses all the characteristics that the Air Force is looking for in a Military Working Dog.

But despite her superb pedigree, Zara, a four-year-old pure-bred German shepherd, is not a “super dog”, according to her handlers at RAAF Base Amberley’s Military Dog Training Flight.

“She is not a super dog, she’s just a very good dog from very good lines that we were lucky enough to be offered,” Officer in Charge of the Military Dog Training Flight Flying Officer Tony Buffett said.

Zara, whose bloodlines are from Eastern Europe, came to the base via a local breeder, who was having trouble finding a suitable, unrelated male to mate with her.

FLGOFF Buffett said Zara had already impressed people at the base with her capabilities, despite having no experience in the type of work military dogs do.

“She’s a dog with high drives and a willingness to work,” FLGOFF Buffett said.

“She is the type of dog that can switch easily from being a friendly, placid dog to fully focused for patrol work. Nearly everyone who has had Zara on the attack arm or watched her in-line aggression has been impressed.”

Using Zara for breeding purposes, however, has not gone as smoothly after she rejected her suitor.

“Zara and a Queensland Police squad dog did not read the text book which told them she should have been pregnant after matings.”

Breeding attempts will resume in November.

• By Ben Caddaye

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