Tag: bomb-sniffing dogs

Watch a Former Soldier Reunite with His K-9 Partner After 3 Years

There’s nothing quite like a reunion between two war heroes after years apart — especially when one of them has two legs and the other has four.

Last week, two of these heart-warming events occurred between former U.S. Army specialists and their bomb-sniffing dogs. The two dogs, along with nine others in the Tactical Explosive Detection Dog (TEDD) program, had been bought by a private company and then left to languish at a boarding kennel for 17 months. Thanks to the efforts of Mission K9 Rescue and the United States War Dogs Association, nonprofit organizations dedicated to finding homes for retired military dogs, photos of the dogs posted on social media successfully helped track down their former handlers.

On Wednesday, after a four-year separation, Tyler Roberts was reunited with his former partner, Donna, a Belgian Malinois, in Thorton, Colo. Roberts is now Donna’s official dog dad, and he said her only assignment from now on is to chase tennis balls.

The next day in Boise, Idaho, Vance McFarland was reunited with his former partner, Ikar, a Czech Shepherd, after three years apart.

“Some times were good, some times were stressful. Having Ikar definitely made it a lot better,” McFarland told KTVB regarding their two-year-long tour of duty together in Afghanistan. “Having a dog with you on deployment is almost like having a little bit of home. Other soldiers were jealous — they always wanted to come up and pet Ikar. We made the best of it.”

McFarland, who’s now a full-time college student, was eager to have Ikar join his wife and two other dogs.

Ikar took a trip to the lake over the weekend, and that’s just the beginning. “He is going to live the rest of his retired life spoiled. Really spoiled,” McFarland told KTVB.

As McFarland waited for Ikar’s plane to land in Boise Thursday, he was concerned that his former partner wouldn’t remember him after so much time had passed.

As you can see from the video, McFarland had nothing to worry about.

Photo via YouTube

RIP Buster, Bomb-Sniffing Dog Who Saved a Thousand Lives

During his five tours of duty in Afghanistan, Bosnia and Iraq, a Royal Air Force (RAF) dog named Buster sniffed out hundreds of improvised explosive devices (IEDs), saving more than 1,000 lives in the process.

The Springer Spaniel reportedly completed more tours than any other military dog, according to the BBC. Buster was bestowed with many awards for his service, including the Dickin medal (considered the Victoria Cross for animals, it’s the U.K. military’s top award for war dogs) and the Crufts Friends for Life Award. He was the first dog to become the official lifetime mascot of the RAF police.

The 13-year-old hero, who retired in 2011, crossed the Rainbow Bridge this week at the Lincolnshire home of his longtime handler, Flight Sgt. Will Barrow.

“Buster saved my life every day we were together,” Barrow writes in his book about their partnership, “Buster: The Military Dog Who Saved a Thousand Lives.” [This is an affiliate link.]  “I owe him so much that I can never repay the debt, even if we lived forever.”

The book, a No. 1 bestseller in the U.K., will be released in the U.S. this fall.

In addition to sniffing out IEDs and tracking Taliban insurgents, Buster provided emotional support to Barrow and his fellow troops.

“Many’s the time I’d find some of the soldiers on the cot beds with him, just chatting away,” Barrow writes. “They felt they could confide in him and it wouldn’t be going anywhere else.”

Buster also had a knack for enchanting the children in war-torn areas. “Like a canine Pied Piper, Buster drew in his crowd and entertained them,” Barrow writes. “Anyone looking on would have wondered how on earth a spaniel from the U.K. could do so much for the ‘hearts and minds’ operation.”

Even after he retired, Buster was still enchanting children. Just days before he died, he and Barrow handed out report cards to students at a local school, according to a statement yesterday from the Royal Air Force.

An event is being arranged by RAF police to celebrate Buster and other military working dogs. It “will give the force an opportunity to remember those special companions that have saved thousands of lives and served so admirably,” the RAF stated.

Photo via Facebook

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