Dogs deployed overseas by the State Department to fight terror are “dying due to medical conditions” and “poor working conditions,” a federal whistleblower said.
Karen Iovino, a veterinarian who was employed by a private contractor that trains explosive-detecting K-9s in Virginia, told News4 that the U.S. is “sending dogs to an area of the world that has a lot of poverty and doesn’t always see dogs or animals the way we do in the United States.” She is now calling on the government to impose tougher oversight on canines deployed to assist allies in war zones.
Dogs are sent to “partner nations throughout the world” as part of the State Department’s Anti-terrorism Assistance program, which claims to have “delivered counterterrorism training to more than 90,000 law enforcement personnel from 154 countries.” But in a federal complaint filed in 2017 with the State Department’s Office of the Inspector General, Iovino alleges that the animals face a “lack of veterinary care” and other hardships once leaving U.S. control.
“If we’re going to gift a dog to these countries, we’ve gotta be sure they’re taken care of,” Iovino said.
Working dogs can cost thousands to train. The Transportation Security Administration, for example, has put the cost of training one of its explosive-detecting dogs and its handler at $26,000.
Iovino reportedly provided the outlet with an internal email from a former colleague that indicated a dog sent to Jordan had died of suspected heat stroke in July 2017, just a few months after the program was first launched in the Middle Eastern country.
The State Department’s 2017 review of the program details its mission in Jordan briefly, stating, “Across Amman, the K-9 Unit and its ATA mentors practiced improved and consistent veterinary care, nutrition, and kennel maintenance, making Jordan’s police canines a sustainable tool against would-be terrorist for years to come.” Both the State Department and the Embassy of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan did not provide an immediate response to the Washington Examiner’s request for comment.
Iovino also reportedly provided photos of underweight K-9s she alleges were taken by a former contractor visiting the dogs overseas. She alleges the private contractor she was employed by until 2017, MSA Security, terminated her after she voiced her concerns to the State Department.
The company declined to comment, citing its government contract, and referred inquiries to the State Department.
The State Department’s inspector general and the U.S. House Committee on Oversight and Reform are reportedly reviewing Iovino’s complaints.
