8.10.11 (LAS CRUCES) - A retired Military Working Dog living in Las Cruces is 1 of 8 finalists to win this year's American Hero Dog Award. As KRWG's Jared Andersen reports, even in retirement the thirteen-year-old dog is doing everything he can to help U.S. troops.
Meet Bino, the Dutch-Sheppard is enjoying retired life with his owner Debbie Kandoll.
Debbie Kandoll says, "He had dog paws on the hot sands of Iraq, while he protected and defended. To paraphrase the words of JFK ask not what your military working dog can do for you, because they've already done for you their whole life, ask what you can do for your military working dog to make their retirement and their last days as comfortable as possible."
Kendal owns two retired military working dogs and started a MilitaryWorkingDogAdoptions website two years ago when she says she learned of flaws in the military dog adoption system.
Up until President Bill Clinton signed a bill in the year 2000, all military working dogs were euthanized after their service. However, now all the dogs are adopted. Kendall's says her website is a resource to match the retired dogs with appropriate owners, and her site also raises money to help pay for any medical costs the dogs have.
Debbie Kandoll says, "Any military working dogs who have medical expenses, most of the public does not realize that when they're retired they have no medical benefits whatsoever, in other words the onus of the medical upkeep falls upon the adopter and sometimes that can be quite expensive, because the reason they're retiring these dogs would be due to either age or medical issues or both."
Luckily Thirteen-year-old Bino is healthy, and he's started serving soldiers in another way.
Debbie Kandoll says, "He delights out of helping his soldiers, and it takes a soldier, he is a four footed soldier, and he knows his two footed soldiers, and when we even go to visit at Fort Bliss and he sees folks in uniform he just lights up. So we go as a team we help the soldier and the new service dog learn all the does and don'ts"
Bino and Kandoll help train new service dogs paired with soldiers who suffer from post tramatic stress disorder or brain injuries. And he is now nominated nationally for "Hero Dog of the Year". Kandoll is hopeful people will go to herodogawards-dot-org to vote for Bino.
Debbie Kandoll says, "It's not about Bino and it's not about me, it's about every military working dog, and it's about every soldier who has post traumatic stress disorder, and traumatic brain injury, and needs a k9 not companion, but a k9 service dog to help them through the rough spots."
Kandoll is hopeful a victory will help shed more light on what Military Working Dogs do for soldiers, and also shed some light on how she says they can be better taken care off by the government after they retire.
Kandoll says, "I mean we have dogs that save thousands of lives daily, our explosive detection dogs are in high demand, and experts estimate that each military working dog during its course of life of service saves 150 soldier lives. Most patriotic Americans have no idea that these dogs are classified as equipment. So a military working dog is not a soldier it's equipment, and therefore we believe that it should be reclassified as MWD soldier Military Working Dog Soldier while it's on active duty, and then as the dog is getting ready to be retired out of the military it then becomes excess equipment, and we are totally opposed to that nomenclature, and we think that it should be changed to MWD Veteran. "
If you would like to vote for Bino you can go to herodogawards-dot-org.
Reported by: I'm Jared Andersen.
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A Soldier to Fight for Taylorby rugbchamp42,875 views
I have been fortunate enough to work with both Ms. Kandoll and MWD (R) Bino in training my service dog for my own PTSD, and there are not enough words that can be said for all these people and working dogs do. Bino's health has deteriorated since this video, but he is still very happy, very eager to work and a highly intelligent canine Soldier. I am proud to have trained under him.
redflygrrrl 6 days ago
Debbie Kandoll is something else, we're lucky to have people like her on this planet.
alan59able 2 weeks ago
That warms my heart, animals deserve good homes
glasnya 2 months ago
this is my dog trainer she is awesome
fredgenna 2 months ago
BILL CLINTON IS A HERO!!! A HERO!!!
monkeyman123321 3 months ago
Excellent video!!! Nice!
VIKING33NY 4 months ago
they save our lives, and in return, we used to put them down because of a retard flaw. Fantastic America, we are now officially heartless jackasses
Foresthunter2 5 months ago
These dogs have given so much they deserve the best in return!~ Love the story!~
animalfreedom1 6 months ago
His name is Bino. MWD Bino C152
dontyouno 6 months ago
Wonderful story! You have my votes! Hope you win!
dontyouno 6 months ago