TEETH! An Old Sergeant Story

The old sergeant and his platoon were patrolling the road to Baghdad Airport and he wasn’t happy about it. They had pulled this duty before and it was hard and dangerous work. But someone had to do it.

TEETH

The platoon was divided among the Iraqi Security Services checkpoints and the sergeant roamed back and forth making sure everyone was in position and that they all had on their battle rattle. The goon squad especially liked to wander so he kept a wary eye on them.

At about 1400hrs a vehicle pulled up to a checkpoint and the old sergeant saw something he had never seen, and he had seen a lot. There were three Arab men in the vehicle------and one VERY angry dog. The dog was being held by two of the men in the back seat and it appeared that the dog didn’t like it because he was bitting anything that moved or touched him.

As the sergeant watched in amazement the dog literally ripped the shirt off one of the men, bit the other on the arm so bad that blood spurted everywhere and in one fluid movement he was out the window. As this was happening the driver reached under his seat and brought out a home made bomb but as he started to throw it, an alert goon squad member shot him in the arm and the bomb fell inside the vehicle, exploding in a fireball.

Luckily there was no one close enough to be injured but the old sergeant wasn’t concentrating on that at the moment. He had froze and was now face to face with the BIGGEST, meanest German Shepard attack dog he had ever seen. He had run directly to the sergeant and now stood, snarling, blood still dripping from one side of its mouth and the terrorist shirt still hanging out the other.

The Shepard did not move but a low growl issued forth from deep within its huge chest. It sounded like a cement mixer. The goon squad had finally focused on the sergeant and as one raised his rifle to fire at the dog the old sergeant very carefully shook his head no.

The two of them stood eyeing each other for several minutes until finally the Shepard walked over, laid the shirt at the old sergeant feet and then calmly lay down like it had just come from a night out on the town. Pappy very slowly bent over and patted the dog on the head, which to the old sergeants great relief, did not result in him losing his hand. Thank you Lord, he thought.

“Well, boy. One thing I can say about you is that you don’t like terrorists. So that makes you ok in my book. Only thing is, who do you like?”

The dog simply looked up at him.

As the goon squad came up to the sergeant, the Shepard was immediately on his feet in the attack position. It made no sound what so ever, but its posture was obvious.

For some reason this angered the sergeant. He bent back over, face to face with the dog and said in a very low and menacing voice, “Dog. These are my men and they’re friends. You harm anyone in an American uniform and I will shoot you myself.”

To everyone’s utter astonishment, instead of taking the sergeant face off, the dog whimpered and lay down again at the sergeants feet.

“Hummm,” the sergeant said out loud.

The dog followed the sergeant the rest of the day. In fact he alerted on two other vehicles that apparently had traces of explosive in them. The surprised occupants were arrested for investigation. He seemed to accept the rest of the platoon and worked with them though he always keep the sergeant in his sight.

And when they packed up to go back inside the wire for the night the dog was in pappy’s humvee and could not be forced to leave.

When they arrived back at their compound the sergeant immediately sent his clerk on a search of the records. He wanted to know if any K-9 units had lost a dog or, even a worse thought, a dog and his handler.

Sure enough by morning they had the news. A dog HAD been lost and considered KIA along with his handler in Fallujah. The description left no doubt. It simply said, “IF YOU ARE NOT A PROFESSIONAL DOG HANDLER, DO NOT APPROACH THIS ANIMAL. DANGEROUS. SHOOT ON SIGHT.”

Pappy could believe that. That night the dog stayed within 10 feet of the old sergeant. Pappy could tell the dog never really slept because at every little sound it was up and ready. When nothing happened he would lay back down and slid his eyes over to the old sergeant.

Pappy had come to some conclusions from the report and from observing the dog himself. Number one the dog had indeed been injured. He had a long scar on his left flank that had apparently healed on its own. Number two, he figured the only reason he had survived his encounter with the dog was that he was the same rank as the dogs original handler and the dog had recognized the stripes. And finally, pappy figured the dog had survived on its own for several months until captured by some terrorists who hoped to use the dog against the Americans.

Pappy wondered to himself with a grim smile, how many Muj the dog had killed.

The next day a dog handler from the Green Zone arrived to transport the animal back. Pappy asked, “Son what will happed to the dog now?”

“Sergeant I’m afraid he will have to be put to sleep. You see, once this kind of dog has bonded with his handler, very seldom will they accept another. I really don’t understand why he didn’t kill you in your sleep last night. With this dog all it would take is one bit from your throat to do you in.”

“It’s a shame really. The dog is actually listed as a member of the United States Army. He even holds the same rank as you do sergeant.”

The old sergeant looked over at the dog laying in the corner of his office but who was very alert to his surroundings. “So, what you’re telling me son, is that the dog is no use to anyone now. He’s old, he’s mean and he is very dangerous?”

‘That’s about it sergeant. He is probably the most deadly and unpredictable dog I have ever seen or even heard of.”

The sergeant nodded. After a minute he said, “Ok son, your dismissed. Go on back to the Zone.”

As the soldier started to protest the sergeant simply held up his hand for silence. “Look kid, I know your just trying to protect me. But I have a feeling that this dog has adopted me. Besides I can handle him. Because I happen to be the most deadly and unpredictable human you have ever seen.” As the soldier drove off, the old sergeant went to the corner and sat down next to the dog. “Well, dog. If this is going to work we have to come to an understanding. I’m the boss and you’re the dog, ok? You do as I say and you might stay alive long enough to get home with me to Missouri. You also have to learn to put up with cigar smoke and to leave me alone when I’m having a drink.”

“Are we clear dog?”

At the sound of the word “drink” the dog had gotten up, crawled under the sergeants desk, pulled a bottle of Jack out and brought it to pappy.

Pappy grinned. “I see your handler was a drinker himself. Dog, from this point on, you’re back on active duty.”

Steve Newton steven.newton1@att.net

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