At funeral, dog mourns the death of Navy SEAL killed in Afghanistan

This blog is dedicated to all the service men and women who put their lives in harm’s way to protect our country and is to their loyalty pet companions.

Jon Tumilson, a Navy SEAL, was one of 30 Americans killed in Afghanistan on Aug. 6 when a rocket-propelled grenade took out a U.S. Chinook helicopter. He was mourned at a service in Rockford, Iowa, attended by 1,500 family members, friends--and Hawkeye, Tumilson's dog.

The Labrador retriever was such an important part of Tumilson's life that the friends and family of the San Diego resident called the dog his "son."

When Tumilson's friend Scott Nichols walked to the front of the room to speak, Hawkeye followed, Today.com reports. "As Nichols prepared to memorialize his friend, Hawkeye dutifully laid down near the casket," Scott Stump writes.

The photo on the right was taken by Tumilson's cousin, Lisa Pembleton, and posted on Facebook. Pembleton wrote on her Facebook page, "To say that he was an amazing man doesn't do him justice. The loss of Jon to his family, military family, and friends is immeasurable."

This story reminds me of Hachikō. In 1924, Hidesaburō Ueno, a professor at the University of Tokyo, took in Hachikō as a pet. During his owner's life, Hachikō greeted him at the end of each day at the nearby Shibuya Station. The pair continued their daily routine until May 1925, when Professor Ueno did not return. The professor had suffered from a cerebral hemorrhage and died, never returning to the train station where Hachikō was waiting. Every day for the next nine years the golden brown Akita waited at Shibuya station.

The permanent fixture at the train station that was Hachikō attracted the attention of other commuters. Many of the people who frequented the Shibuya train station had seen Hachikō and Professor Ueno together each day. They brought Hachikō treats and food to nourish him during his wait.

This continued for nine years with Hachikō appearing precisely when the train was due at the station.

Hachikō died on March 8, 1935, and was found on a street in Shibuya. After decades of rumors, in March 2011 scientists settled the cause of death of Hachikō. The dog had terminal cancer and a filaria infection (worms). There were also four yakitori sticks in Hachikō's stomach, but the sticks did not damage his stomach or cause his death.

Hachikō's stuffed and mounted remains are kept at the National Science Museum of Japan in Ueno, Tokyo. Hachikō's legendary faithfulness became a national symbol of loyalty.

Source: Today.com
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Bill approved to make VA service-dog friendly

The House of Representatives could vote as early as next week on sweeping legislation that makes the Veterans Affairs Department more dog-friendly.

A House committee has approved legislation that would allow service dogs to be used on any VA property or in any VA facility, including any facility or property receiving VA funding.

“I’m really pleased this legislation is moving, just for the sheer fact we have been trying to do this for so long,” said Christina Roof, deputy national legislative director for the veterans’ service organization AmVets. “VA could have done this itself, by regulation, a long time ago if they wanted, but they haven’t done anything so it looks like Congress will.”

Under current law and regulation, VA is required only to allow guide dogs for the blind onto its property and into facilities because those are the only type of assistance animals specifically covered in federal law. Individual facilities directors can be more flexible, if they wish.

VA officials have been working since March on trying to come up with a new service dog policy but discussions have been bogged down, in part, over the question of whether the policy should specifically list the types of service dogs that should be allowed or to leave that open to interpretation.

Language included in HR 2074, a veterans’ health care bill passed Sept. 28 by the House Veterans’ Affairs Committee, would end the discussion. The provision is very direct, saying the VA secretary “may not prohibit the use of service dogs in any facility or on any property.” The bill makes no effort to define what constitutes a service dog.

Roof said she expects common sense would be used, with eligible dogs having received some specialized training in order to be considered a service dog and with facilities still able to have restrictions on where dogs could go on the premises. For example, a service dog would not be allowed into an operating room but might be allowed in the waiting room of a medical clinic, she said.

In addition to opening the buildings and grounds to service dogs, the bill would create a three-year pilot program in which veterans with post-traumatic stress or other post-deployment mental disorders would be involved in training service dogs for other veterans. The idea of the test is to see if being a dog trainer has any rehabilitation benefits for veterans.

Veterans who have service dogs would have priority in being hired as trainers under the pilot program.

Source: airforcetimes
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Good Karma

A dog named Karma.

Need some good karma in your life? You’ll get it in spades when you show this darling Pit Bull how wonderful pet parents can be. You’ll also get a snuggle buddy for life out of Karma, who loves being cuddled, patted and given nice, long belly rubs!

ASPCA Humane Law Enforcement Agents rescued Karma from an abusive home that subjected him to starvation. But in spite of all he’d been through, Karma showed ASPCA behavior staff his true colors right away, wagging his tail happily and acting very social. During his time at the ASPCA, he’s only become more easygoing.

Like most Pits, Karma needs some running exercise every day, and he’d love to learn basic manners and anything else you can imagine if you’ve got a tasty treat waiting for him. Karma’s hips are a little funky, so he needs to be on joint lubricating vitamins for life, but the condition is unlikely to require serious care.

This active, fun-loving guy would do wonderfully in a home with kids 10 and up where he could get lots of love and toys to play with. If you’d like to provide that for him, please call our Animal Placement department in New York City at (212) 876-7700, ext. 4120.

Adopt a pet today. Get him/her a good ID Tag. A good ID Tag with up to date info is a vital safety net for keeping you and your companion together. ... If your pet gets lost, an identification tag can help bring him home.

Source: ASPCA, ID4Pet