Thys Kleyn
Thys Kleyn served in the SAPS for 9 years as a K9 instructor, and heads up patrol and aggression training. He holds an LL.B. degree from the University of Pretoria, and is currently on the roll of non-practicing lawyers of South Africa. Additionally, he has 12 years’ experience in countries like Tanzania, Iraq and Afghanistan as handler, trainer and project manager. In Iraq, he was part of the personal protection teams for Prime Minister Maliki and President Alawi. He was also responsible for establishing a canine unit at the Sulmania International Airport in Kurdistan. In Afghanistan, he assisted the Coalition Forces as Combat Dog Handler for four years, during which time he was deployed with the ground troops, handling a detection dog, searching for roadside bombs and Improvised Explosive Devices. Thys was also a trainer, project manager and quality control manager for canine programs in Afghanistan for another three years. During this time, he trained the VIP dog unit for President Karzai and the Border Police. He also formed part of the US department of State’s Anti-terrorist Assistance Canine program in Afghanistan. He also used his expertise for training dogs and dog handlers in Afghanistan and Thailand. Thys is a registered SASSETA facilitator, assessor and moderator. His resumé is available on request.