U.S. Marine Cpl. Kyle Click, a dog handler with 3rd

U.S. Marine Cpl. Kyle Click, a dog handler with 3rd Platoon, Kilo Company, 3rd Battalion, 3rd Marine Regiment, and 22-year-old native of Grand Rapids, Mich., shares a moment with Windy, an improvised explosive device detection dog, while waiting to resume a security patrol here, Feb. 27, 2012. On deployment in Helmand province’s Garmsir district, the ‘America’s Battalion’ dog handlers and their improvised explosive device detection dogs live, travel and work together. In a combat environment largely devoid of the safety and comforts of home, the energetic Labrador retrievers are neither pets nor expendable objects. They’re faithful friends and saviors of Marines. Since arriving here in November, IED detection dogs have found four drug caches and two IEDs.