Startribune.com
For my fifth post I read an article on a military dog and its hopeful human companion. Gwen Beberg, an army sergeant who is stationed in Iraq, saved a “whimpering puppy” in a burning barrel of trash. She named it Ratchet, and couldn’t imagine her time in Iraq without it. On Oct. 1, she tried to send Ratchet to her family’s home here in Minnesota, but he was taken by an officer before he reached the plane. There is an organization working to fly these animals home from the war called “Operation Baghdad Pups”, and they are involved in trying to get Ratchet home. This sad problem of Beberg’s has become a huge cause- according to the StarTribune.com over 8,000 people have signed online petitions to get these animals home. A huge fear of Gwen’s is that Ratchet will be shot before her new scheduled pick- up date.
Another element to Beberg’s situation is that she only signed-up for a 3- year long place in the Army. Due to the Stop-Loss program, she was sent to Iraq. Her mom is fighting for the right to bring Ratcher home as well, e-mailing senators and representatives. It’s crazy how she got stop-lossed to Iraq and cannot bring home the one thing that got her through her time there. She is quoted to have said, "I couldn't have made it through this deployment without his wagging tail and understanding eyes. This is unbelievably important to me, my family, my friends, and even perfect strangers who have taken up the cause." Anyone with that much emotion in two simple sentences means business, in my opinion.
I’m a big animal lover myself, and I know I’d be extremely upset if my dogs were taken away from me or killed. They do provide comfort in a world where it’s hard to find in tough times. Dogs don’t expect much from you, just love and a few belly-rubs. Having a companion like that taken away on a whim cannot be easy for anyone, much less a sergeant in the army because post-traumatic stress disorder is so prevalent in veterans.
Overall, a very saddening article to read- I’m hoping for the best for Gwen and her dog!
Stacey
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