Dogs from military base in Afghanistan find new home

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By Mark Sommer
NEWS STAFF REPORTER

Bear and Hutch, two of the United States’ newest immigrants, are settling into their new home in North Buffalo.

Saturday afternoon, the mixed-breed dogs from Afghanistan flew on Pakistan International Airlines into John F. Kennedy International Airport, where they were met by William “Craig” Macy, a 28-year-old staff sergeant with the New York Army National Guard who first befriended the dogs when they were puppies, in September 2008.

“They were pretty happy. They were happy to get out of their cages more than anything,” Macy said of the dogs’ reaction upon seeing him.

“It was pretty exciting to know the dogs made this crazy, long journey from the other side of the world. . . . You get really attached to them.”

It took about a month for the dogs to reach the States, due to delays. Their journey took them from the village of Sharana, in southeastern Afghanistan, to Kabul, where they were boarded onto a flight for Pakistan, and from there to a flight for New York. Macy flew to JFK to get the dogs and returned with a friend by car.

Macy, a graduate of Williamsville South High School, was with fellow Guard members on foot patrol when they came upon the two dogs, who were then not much bigger than 12- ounce water bottles.

“They were sickly looking little puppies,” Macy said.

A friend’s sister sent vaccines for the dogs, and “we just started taking care of them from there,” he said.

The dogs had the run of the place at the 27th Brigade Combat Team’s operating base and, with no Puppy Chow available, were fed eggs and meat products.

“We’d just make them an extra plate when we made dinners,” Macy said. “Everybody always fed them and took care of them. Sometimes we’d give them a bath on off days.”

Macy said he will soon take them for their first visit to the veterinarian. But right now, he wants them to rest, get used to the indoors and practice walking up and down stairs, which they’re becoming less tentative about.

Although the dogs seem surprisingly well-adjusted considering their ordeal, Macy put bedding down on the kitchen floor Saturday night — and man and man’s best friend spent the night sleeping near the refrigerator.

“It’s very weird, the calming effect that they have. It just totally takes you out of [the] environment you’re in,” he said.

Macy said the dogs provided him a needed respite from the stress of patroling in a high-combat area.

“There were several long, trying days, and you come back and see the dogs, and it’s like, that stuff that happened didn’t happen. You’re just sitting there playing with the dogs. You appreciate what they give you,” Macy said.

Maj. Sean Murphy, the unit’s commanding officer from New York City, raised the idea of shipping the dogs back to the States a while back and then notified Macy two weeks ago that their shipment was in progress.

The transport was expedited by a shelter in Kabul that aids animals and helps soldiers send dogs to the States. Murphy, who paid the $5,600 for the dogs to be shipped, plans to adopt Hutch when he returns in July. Macy will keep Bear.

Like the dogs, Macy is also making the transition from Afghanistan. He returned in December from a year of active duty. He has also served in Iraq, where he suffered a wound to his pelvis while on patrol on Memorial Day 2005 that required eight months of recovery in Walter Reed Army Medical Center. His seven years in the National Guard and two years in the Army have also taken him to the Sinai Peninsula to serve on a peacekeeping force.

Macy was sworn in as a Buffalo police officer in January 2008 before shipping out and plans to start his new job with the Police Department in the near future. He looks forward to his new career and is glad Bear and Hutch have been spared the hard lives of many dogs in Afghanistan.

“You see a lot of carcasses from dogs all over, from malnourishment, the weather, lack of steady food, disease,” he said. “They probably would have lived very short lives.”

For information on how to send dog food to Afghanistan or offer help for soldiers to send dogs to the U. S., contact constablepam@hotmail.com. msommer@buffnews.com