I didn't sign. Mostly because I didn't like the over-the-top hyperbole. I'm glad she loves her dog and all, but having a policy of transporting dogs from foreign wars to US soil doesn't seem like a good idea for the US Army. She can spend private money (which is what it looks like they are trying to raise) to bring the dog here.
I didn't sign because I don't think signing an online petition can convince the military to let a dog from Iraq come back with its adopted owner.
Makes sense. Plus that link mentions the danger of possible diseases when initially befriending a stray animal.
Lady Di.....my cousin is selling German Shepard pups. Just found out two days ago.....cute but then they grow up.
Agreed. "Ratchet was the savior of her sanity. Now they have cruelly ripped Ratchet away from her and sentenced him to death. I don't know how my daughter will cope. Ratchet has been her lifeline" "Soldiers can face immediate court-marshal for befriending animals and some even see their animals brutally murdered by a direct gunshot to the head from commanding officers who will not bend the rules." "It was so close... Ratchet was on his way to the airport. And now he might not have a chance to be with Gwen and her family, and she might be punished herself because she dared to care about him." Just too over the top for me.. and they're saying that commanding officer SHOULD bend the rules, which seems ridiculous for any branch of the military.
Perhaps it has to do with transporting bacteria over international waters. http://bbs.clutchfans.net/showthread.php?t=155384
If the military makes an exception to her, then other may start expecting the same. Then you have a situation where an outbreak of rabies from a befriended stray led to 53 soldiers being infected at an Afghanistan air base in 2005. Apparently another concern is that stray dogs often attract feral dogs to the bases. Also, it appears that the problem with transporting the dogs to the US is that the military doesn't want to do it/pay for it themselves. Not surprising considering this: "Because only military animals are allowed to fly on Department of Defense planes, the soldiers must find alternative means of transporting their adopted friends back to the United States. Flying an animal across international borders and dealing with bureaucratic issues can cost as much as $2,000." I have no problem with that. If she wants to transport her pet to the US, she can pay for it herself, or seek donations through Baghdad Pups.
They (bagdhad pups) were paying for it. And the military took the dog back when it was about to board the plane. That's the point
I see that now. The article is difficult to read the way it is formatted. I guess my question now is why did they single out this one dog as not allowed to leave when they allowed 15 others on the Baghdad Pups flight? I'm just skeptical of the article because it doesn't seem to tell the full story.
don't know. perhaps the other dogs were raised by contractors or something. I only know what I read on the petition, and being a dog owner, it pissed me off that she can't take it home with her...especially considering that she served her country
A happy ending... http://www.cnn.com/2008/US/10/19/iraq.ratchet.the.dog/index.html?eref=rss_topstories
Wow that is money well spent. Good thing we aren;t paying for some ones tuition for a semester with that. We need more dogs here.
