New Rottweiler puppies put into service

On Monday, the traditional dog naming ceremony took place at the military dog center in Kaisersteinbruch in Burgenland. Eight Rottweiler puppies were put into service. For the second time, Defense Minister Klaudia Tanner symbolically took over the sponsorship of a Rottweiler puppy. At her side, other personalities became godparents for the faithful four-legged friends. This laid the foundation for the training of the future protection and guard dogs. “I am delighted to be part of the moment when a small puppy becomes a great comrade and companion. These loyal companions on four paws are important employees and ensure that our soldiers are protected around the clock during operations. As of today, our new employees are undergoing intensive education and training in order to be deployed in their future role as service dogs alongside their military dog handler. I would also like to take this opportunity to thank our military dog handlers, who are doing a fantastic job,” said Defense Minister Klaudia Tanner.

The traditional act of baptizing puppies, in which the service dogs are given their badge, took place for the first time in 1986 with the painter Gottfried Kumpf. In addition to the Minister of Defence, actress and presenter Verena Scheitz, disabled athlete (athletics) Bil Marinkovic and synchronized swimmer Vasiliki Alexandri, both from the Army Performance Sports Centre, Brigadier Sylvia Sperandio, Lieutenant General Franz Reißner, Brigadier Gernot Gasser and Lieutenant Colonel Markus Ziegler have also taken on a sponsorship. The eight puppies were born last July. The five males (“Iron”, “Inox”, “Iwo”, “Idol”, “Iwan”) and the three females (“Ina”, “Isa”, “Ivy”) start their training as guard and protection dogs with the dog naming ceremony. Before they start, the dogs are health-tested and attend the so-called “puppy school”. The Rottweiler is a reliable service dog breed in the Austrian military dog system. Due to its character traits, it is very well suited as a guard and protection dog. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iWSkPaad55k The Military Dog Center in Burgenland breeds and trains service dogs and is the only competence center for dogs in the Austrian Armed Forces. The military dogs are Rottweilers, German shepherds, Labradors and hunting dogs, which are used throughout Austria and abroad. The Austrian Armed Forces currently have 172 military dogs and 122 military dog handlers throughout Austria. In addition, the Military Dog Center is working on international cooperation projects to expand its expertise with the European Defense Agency, Germany, Slovenia, Italy and Ghana.