By Petty Officer 2nd Class Renee C. Coleman, U.S. Coast Guard
For The Tribune
Chief Petty Officer Ferro, a canine explosive detector dog, has served in the Coast Guard for nine years alongside his handler Petty Officer 1st Class Shane Coleman.
In a ceremony held June 10 at Coast Guard Maritime Safety and Security Team in Galveston, Texas, Chief Ferro was formally retired.
Coleman is a Trussville native and a 1996 Hewitt-Trussville High School graduate. His father and mother, Ed and Judy Coleman, reside in Trussville.
Ferro and Coleman’s partnership has spanned nearly a decade. Ferro, a Belgian Malinois, was hand-picked as a puppy to become a Coast Guard detector canine, and underwent several exams. Ferro was given a prey, hunt, drive test to see if he would have the ability to work for explosive detection. He was also given a rigorous health exam, as well as other tests to ensure he would be able to work in high-stress environments, Coleman said.
Ferro passed all the tests and at 14 months, in October 2004, was partnered with Coleman at Customs and Border Protection Canine Enforcement Center in Front Royal, Va.
Meanwhile, Coleman was selected to become a Coast Guard canine handler. At that time, Coleman was stationed at Maritime Safety and Security Team Kings Bay, Ga. When a solicitation came out for interested petty officers to apply for the Coast Guard’s canine program, Coleman knew this was the opportunity he had been waiting for.
“I had a high desire to work with dogs because I’ve had dogs all my life,” Coleman said. “I thought it would be a rewarding job to get in to. I would be the forefront of national security with a United States Coast Guard explosive detector canine.”
Coleman responded to the solicitation for handlers and was selected to train for 17 weeks. While at the training center, Coleman would learn to master dog handling. His canine counterpart would be trained to detect explosives.
“Ferro was a challenging dog to work with,” Coleman said. “I knew in my heart that I was going to be the only one who would be able to handle him.”
It was during the second week of training that Coleman was assigned two dogs: Max, a yellow Labrador retriever, and Ferro. He was not given a choice breed.
“Ferro was at the back of his cage with his ears pinned back, the hair on his back sticking up, and he was growling and snarling at everyone,” Coleman said. “At first I thought, ‘I hope I don’t get that dog.’” He was mean-looking, but I do remember that he was a handsome dog.”
Petty Officer 1st Class Shane Coleman receives a shadow box gift on behalf of Chief Petty Officer Ferro, a Belgian Malinois and Coast Guard explosive detector dog during a retirement ceremony June 10.
photo courtesy of Petty Officer 1st Class Andrew Kendrick, U.S. Coast Guard
Aside from Ferro’s rugged good looks, Coleman thought Ferro’s name was indicative to his personality, he said. The name Ferro was derived from the periodic table of elements. The symbol Fe on the periodic table of elements means iron, so the name Ferro fits to the canine’s build and personality, Coleman said.
As the weeks passed at the training center, Ferro developed as a detector dog. He retained his aggressive behavior and lashed out at Coleman. At week 16, Coleman went to get Ferro out of his kennel for a day of training. Coleman said that Ferro did not want to get out of his kennel. In a split second, Ferro attacked Coleman, biting Coleman from finger tips to shoulders on both arms. The wounds required Coleman to seek emergency medical attention, which resulted in several dozen stitches. The scares are still visible today. Later, a subsequent attack resulted in another round of stitches. This second attack was grounds for the director of the training center to pull Ferro from the training program.
“I asked the director of the training center to reconsider and allow me to work with the dog some more,” Coleman said. “I felt that Ferro was misunderstood. He needed a little more time to develop to his full potential.”
At week 17, Coleman selected Ferro as his partner, and the pair graduated from the training center.
“I knew he was the one,” Coleman said. “I was the only one he changed his behavior toward. I was the only one he would let get him out of his kennel.”
Ferro and Coleman spent six years deploying from Bay Kings to various locations throughout the U.S. They then spent three years at MSST Galveston.
Ferro will be 10 years old Aug. 4.
“We have been partners for almost a decade,” Coleman said. “I know his every move. He knows my every move. I have been with this dog 24 hours per day, seven days per week for nine years, both at work and at home. I even take him on leave when I can. We go deer hunting together, we go duck hunting together and we go fishing together. He is going to be the ring bearer in my wedding.”
Ferro’s retirement ceremony served a dual purpose: Ferro’s service life was celebrated, and the command at MSST Galveston said farewell and following seas to Coleman, who has been reassigned to the Coast Guard Cutter Vigorous, a 210-foot medium endurance cutter home-ported in Cape May, N.J.
“It is going to be tough knowing I will be out on patrol doing law enforcement missions and he won’t be there with me,” Coleman said. “That’s on the work side of things. On the personal side of things, I am used to having him with me all the time.”
During Ferro and Coleman’s partnership, the pair traveled more than 400,000 road miles together. They have been sent on missions to 21 states, including Puerto Rico, and taken three cross-country flights together, all for the sake of protecting the country’s ports, waterways and borders.
“He’s had a good life, and we’ve had an outstanding partnership,” Coleman said. “I know that while I’m out to sea, that he will be taken care of by my future wife. We joke around saying he will become mommy’s baby, and I’m certain that will be the case.”
