No Buddy Left Behind: bringing U.S. Troops’ dogs and cats safely home from the combat zone by Terri Crisp with Cynthia Hurn ISBN 978-0762773862
cover art from No Buddy Left Behind by Terri Crisp
I seem to be fluctuating from complete fluff to heavy military matters. This is probably good because I would probably go crazy if I read all of one or the other!
Terri Crisp is an excellent writer and has some wonderful insight into helping animals in need and the people who care for them. The soldiers’ lives in combat zones are so different and stressful that it is natural for them to want to find some joy and add a furry companion to help deal with stress. The enemies have used this against Americans by using wounded animals to hide bombs and hurt soldiers who exhibit compassion. So the military has issued orders that soldiers cannot have pets. Yet somehow soldiers and civilians in combat zones still acquire animals and when groups are leaving and bases are being closed, animals can be in danger and their love of people can be their death as they are brutalized by people who don’t care for animals and do not know how to hunt for themselves.
Enter SPCA International and Terri Crisp. One day she received an email from a soldier. This email had been forwarded many times and eventually it ended up in her inbox and she knew she had to try and do something. Logistically it was a mess with air lines not serving some areas and some legs of the journey which had to be flown on private contractors. In my opinion, Terri shows courage for just attempting the vet certificates, regulations and quarantines of many different nations. The restrictions of not traveling in summer because of killer heat and everything else, but you read about the soldiers and what these animals mean to them — it is truly worth it. The life of a soldier is hell — and when an animal companion can help them smile and want them to live one more day, isn’t it good to help them save one more life?
This book is recommended to animal lovers and readers who respect our soldiers and their sacrifice. When you are away from friends and family a little unconditional love can go a long way.
This is a great book.
Book Description
Publication Date: October 4, 2011The love of a dog or cat helps heal soldiers’ emotional trauma. One very special woman and program brings them back together after the war.
No Buddy Left Behind is an animal book with a difference. It is not only about rescued dogs and cats, but also about U.S. soldiers trying to survive the horrors of war and readjust to life back home. It unveils the life-altering relationships American troops serving in the Middle East share with the stray dogs and cats they rescue from the brutalities of war. Overcoming monumental obstacles, Terri Crisp makes it her mission to save these wartime “buddies,” get them out of danger, and bring them home to the soldiers who love them.So, how does someone get animals out of a country at war when normal resources are lacking and every step of a plan to transport animals could get you arrested, kidnapped, or blown apart? As Crisp soon learns, each rescue mission from first to last is a fly-by-the-seat-of-your-pants experience, and no animal is truly safe until its paws touch American soil. Terri and her team have saved the lives of 223 dogs and forty-two cats befriended by military personnel since February 2008—and No Buddy Left Behind finally tells this story.
