Retired Military Dogs Enjoy Greener Pastures

January 2000

After learning about the plight of Robby, the military working dog scheduled to spend the rest of his life in a kennel at Lackland Air Force Base in San Antonio, Texas, when he became no longer “deployable,” PETA spoke with and wrote to several officials at military bases, urging them to grant Robby a proper retirement in a loving home. We also wrote dozens of letters to other concerned individuals, urging that they do the same.

Our efforts prompted several major newspaper articles, one of which appeared in Stars and Stripes (“PETA, Experts Rap DoD’s Blanket Euthanization of Military Dogs”) and was read by member of Congress Roscoe Bartlett, who was disturbed by the Department of Defense’s policy not to adopt out working dogs at the end of their “careers.”

A representative from his office then called us, and shortly after our conversation, a bill was introduced and passed that allows certain military working dogs to be adopted out to caring handlers to live the rest of their lives “off-duty” in loving homes. We urged our members to support the bill throughout its passage and also issued an action alert asking that they urge President Clinton to sign the bill, which he did.