After 2 years apart, Iraq War vet and his military dog reunite
After nearly two years apart, Sgt. Jason Bos and his bomb-sniffing chocolate lab, nicknamed Cici, reunited today at Chicago's O'Hare International Airport.
"My heart is beating so fast," Bos told the Chicago Tribune at the airport. "She looked at me, she started smelling me, she knew me."
Bos and the dog, formally named MWD (Military War Dog) Cila M389, trained together at the Lackland Air Force Base before serving overseas on multiple deployments starting in 2008. While in Iraq, Bos and Cila searched for roadside bombs and hidden weapon caches. Back in the United States, the pair screened sites for presidential visits.
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But Bos suffered a back injury during training in 2012, which ultimately forced him to leave the military. Bos moved home to Michigan, where he is currently taking business classes at a local college. Cila had years left in the military, so she moved on to another trainer.
A month ago, Bos learned via Facebook that Cila was due to retire from service. The kennel master at his former base contacted Bos and asked if he was interested in adopting his former partner. A ream of paperwork and plenty of help with expenses from the American Humane Association and Mission K9 Rescue later, and Bos and Cila reunited. The human member of the duo said he's looking forward to teaching Cila about a life of leisure; he has already built her a dog house.
"She's going to get to be on the couch, everywhere," Bos told the Tribune. "She's going to be living the civilian life."
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Sarah Eberspacher is an associate editor at TheWeek.com. She has previously worked as a sports reporter at The Livingston County Daily Press & Argus and The Arizona Republic. She graduated from Northwestern University's Medill School of Journalism.
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