Military working dogs have been a part of our military dating back to the first World Wars. Fast forward to the current conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan and K9’s have become even more popular. The selection and training these dogs go through can sometimes be just as grueling as the selection and training their handlers go through. They do that for a reason. Due to the austere environments that the operators work in at times the dogs need to be able to keep pace with the unit, whether that’s jumping out of a plane, rappelling down a cliff, swimming, or moving long distances on foot. Take a look at the following bad ass video to get a glimpse into how tough and resilient these dogs are.

Once these dogs retire from their service with various military units they have the opportunity of spending their retirement at a facility owned and operated by Mike Ritland. Mike Ritland is a former Navy SEAL multi purpose dog handler and trainer. He offers rehabilitation services to retired dogs. His company, Trikos International, breeds and trains new dogs for positions within high levels of the Federal Government. Check out the following video to watch what Mike has to say about these amazing dogs.

This article was originally posted on the Loadout Room and written by Scott Witner.