Veterans urge military to bring dogs home to retire

Former Marine Corps Sgt. Deano Miller pauses in his war story, choking back tears.

"They said they'd give us time to say goodbye. They didn't," Miller says, looking down at his yellow Labrador. "It was like I was abandoning my best friend and he couldn't understand why."

Miller and his explosives-sniffing dog Thor spent every day of their 2010 tour in Afghanistan together. But when the tour ended in November 2010, Miller returned to the U.S. while Thor worked four more years before his retirement. The pair reunited in May.

There are more than 1,775 military working dogs detecting explosives, going on search-and-rescue missions, and guarding troops. In an average year, 300 to 400 dogs retire and are adopted. If they're not adopted, they are left in a kennel.

Some are adopted overseas and have to be flown home — at a cost to the adopter that can be thousands of dollars.

Miller wants the military to pay for transportation back to the United States.

He went to Capitol Hill with other veterans and animal-rights advocates this week to urge members of Congress to press the Pentagon to pay for that expensive trip. Military policy says a retired dog may be transported to the United States, but that's not required and it rarely happens.

A military dog retires when the animal is injured, sick or can't perform anymore.

"Military working dogs that are retired overseas will go to a local shelter or another military facility if they're not adopted," says American Humane Association president Robin Ganzert. "We need to bring them back to the U.S., the country they were raised in and served for. They need to be retired on U.S. soil and reunited with the soldier that they worked with, because that's the person that cares most about the dog. It's a powerful bond they share."

Douglas Miller, Defense Department canine program manager at Joint Base San Antonio-Lackland, Texas, says it's not that easy.

"There would have to be a requirement for the dog to come to the continental United States and funding to bring it here," Miller says. "The major barrier is funding, since current policy requires a military war dog flying outside the contiguous United States be escorted by a qualified handler."

Air Force spokesman Maj. Jody Ritchie says dogs are never retired in combat zones; they go to stay at bases in Germany. He says returning dogs to the United States would be "an expense and a resource issue" that could leave a shortage of handlers on overseas bases.

According to the Defense Department, it's rare that a dog isn't adopted.

"A list of 400 to 500 persons volunteering to adopt a military working dog is maintained by the adoption coordinator, and many of them will gladly provide the necessary funds to transport the dog to their location at their own expense," Miller says.

But Ganzert says some dogs are left behind. She says a troop that adopts a dog shouldn't have to bear the expense of transport.

"They give the best years of their lives, valiantly protecting our service members and our own freedom," says Ruby Ridpath, a civilian who adopted Carlos, an explosives-detecting yellow Labrador. "He's worth every penny."

Army Staff Sgt. James Harrington says the reunion is just as important for the handler as it is for the dog. Harrington was reunited with his dog Ryky, trained to locate hidden explosives, just three weeks ago.

Harrington says Ryky will help him deal with post-traumatic stress disorder.

"I'll never call her my pet," Harrington says, choking up. "She is my partner."