Meet Nachmi Feinblatt.......... our special guest for 2011

"The Story of a K9 Combat Dog Handler"

 By: Nachmi Feinblatt

The Story of a Combat Dog Handler reveals the day to day life and experiences of a combatant in the "Oketz" K9 Unit of the IDF. It invites the reader to take a candid look at the daily routine of an Oketz dog handler and combatant, the rigors of training as well as combat activity in Lebanon, sharing the experiences of losing close friends and at the same time those of falling in love and easing into civilian life after discharge; experiences shared by many combatants alongside those shared by only a handful.

Nachmi Finblat was born and raised in Hadera. In his youth he won the Israeli Windsurfing Championship. In the IDF he served as a combatant in the "Oketz" K-9 Special Operations Infantry Unit which specializes in locating explosives.

Finblat was severely wounded during combat activity in Lebanon.

He has degrees in Business Administration and Law and has served, amongst others as a Military Advocate and a Police Officer.

On a Personal Note:

I wrote this story during the last 3 months of my service on the IDF Citation Committee following the 2006 Second Lebanon War. I was privileged to be amongst the five people who heard the combatants' and commanders testimonials following that war which included hair raising and difficult experiences they underwent. Listening to them made me relive the many experiences I had had during my service in Lebanon where I spent 18 months of my life alongside my dog Linda until we were both wounded from an explosive device. In fact it was these testimonials which prompted me to write my own personal history.

When they talked about walking through the wadi, I could see the landscapes and smell the brush and the grass; when they described a shooting incident they were involved in, I could literally hear the bullets whistling; and when they recounted how they were wounded – I felt the warm blood oozing and instinctively tried blocking it with my hand.

The book I wrote described, amongst others, the very special bond created between my army combat dog Linda and myself, during training, combat operations, love and other experiences we had together and separately.