America


America’s Dogged Heroes Finally Get Their Due


Faithful military service canines — once widely euthanized after their tours of duty — are now being welcomed into loving homes.


M BY DAVE EBERHART


arine corps cpl. stacy K. Chester was put- ting his military service dog Dingo through the


paces, running along a tree line when a poisonous snake suddenly struck Dingo’s leg. His leg quickly began to swell,


and a distraught Chester rushed his comrade back to their base in Cherry Point, N.C. There, the base veterinarian gave


Chester the bad news: A lethal dose of venom was coursing through Dingo’s body, and he would die without imme- diate treatment. Worse, the nearest supply of anti-


venin was hundreds of miles away in Norfolk, Va. That’s when the word came down from the chain of com- mand: Do whatever it takes to get that dog treatment. Within minutes, Dingo was evacu-


ated the same way wounded soldiers are on the battlefield — by helicopter. “My first thoughts when briefed


by our operations section was, Wait — a dog?” Marine Corps Capt. Brett Malavenda told Marine Corps News. “After being told that it was a working dog, I said, ‘Hey, we have a Marine bitten, let’s get moving.’” The visibil- ity of war dogs has been on the rise


24 NEWSMAX | AUGUST 2012


ever since Cairo, a specially trained Belgian Malinois attached to an elite Navy SEAL team, participated in the raid that killed Osama bin Laden. But gallant military dogs such as


Dingo and Cairo were not always so prized. Although loved by their han- dlers, they were abandoned by the country they served. In fact, it wasn’t that long ago that


military work dogs would be routinely euthanized after they reached a cer- tain age.


Ron Aiello of the United States War


Dogs Association, a former Marine dog-handler himself, tells Newsmax 1,600 of the roughly 4,900 Vietnam- era dogs were euthanized. Gradually, public outrage grew


over military canines being put to sleep once they grew too old to serve (about 8 years old). The issue came to a head when a


retiring work dog named Robby was slated for euthanasia. His military handler protested on Capitol Hill,


REUTERS


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