Bring Home a Hero! Rescue Helps Retired Working Dogs Experience the Joy of Finding a Family

Mission K9 Rescue is committed to the canine members of the U.S. military.

The animal protection organization was started to help working dogs retiring from the military find loving homes after their service.

“We rescue, reunite, re-home, rehabilitate and repair any retired working dog that has served mankind,” Kristen Maurer, Mission K9 Rescue’s president and co-founder, tells PEOPLE.

Today, 10 years after starting, Mission K9 has rescued “nearly 1,300 dogs,” according to Bob Bryant, Mission K9’s co-founder and chief technology officer.

Maurer founded the organization with Bryant and Luisa Kasner after discovering that retired military working dogs “were mostly being euthanized” instead of being reunited with their handlers.

When Mission K9 Rescue started 10 years ago, the cost of transporting a retired military canine from its international station — anywhere from Germany to Guam — to the home of its former handler was the responsibility of the handler. Often the pricey flight costs and overwhelming logistics involved with flying a dog internationally prohibited handlers from reuniting with their former canine partners.

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“The burden was falling on the handlers. And so we wanted to take that burden off of them,” Maurer explains.

Mission K9 Rescue responded to this issue by helping handlers with costs and travel plans and by calling for changes to the law that would put more responsibility on the military to provide for its working dogs.

As of 2022, after a years-long series of new laws and changes to military rules, “it is up to the military to bring the dogs back from overseas,” Maurer says.

These changes have made handler and working dog reunions more likely, but there are still circumstances where military working dogs don’t have a home to go to after retirement. In this situation, Mission K9 Rescue steps in to take over care of the dog until the organization finds the canine a forever home.

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Many of the dogs available for adoption through Mission K9 Rescue are contract working dogs, which differ from military working dogs in that they are trained and owned by private companies instead of the Department of Defense.

Just like military working dogs, contract working dogs can be trained to be bomb or drug detection dogs, but unlike military canines, contract working dogs “had no exit plan,” according to Maurer.

“There was really no awareness for them,” she says, adding that handlers working with contract working dogs “go back on another contract when the dog retires, and they can’t keep their dog.”

“It’s just not as easy. So we take in all those dogs a lot more for them.”

Mission K9 Rescue strives to provide the canines under its care with a “cushy life” post-retirement, Maurer says.

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“They’re out there doing a job they didn’t ask to do. They were drafted into this. So for us, we feel like giving them a home and giving them that last bit of their life, the best life we can, is an honor,” she adds.

Mission K9 Rescue is looking for adopters who feel the same way about the organization’s canine retirees. Potential pet parents interested in adopting a retired working dog should be prepared for “medical bills along the way.”

“A lot of the dogs have worked to train like athletes their entire life. So they have a lot of medical issues,” Maurer says.

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According to Bryant, retired working dogs will gladly respond to your care and compassion with devoted companionship.

“They’re undoubtedly the smartest dog you’re ever going to have in your life. These dogs are incredibly trained. They are on point with all their commands, and they share a special bond with you that other dogs just don’t offer,” he says.

Read on to meet some of the dogs available for adoption through Mission K9 Rescue. Those interested in adopting a retired working dog from the organization should visit Mission K9’s website to learn more about the adoption process.

ICE

Ice is a 10-year-old German Shorthaired Pointer retired from the TSA’s Explosives Detection K9 Unit at the Los Angeles International Airport. He spent his career searching passengers, cargo, vehicles, baggage, and aircraft. After many years of using his nose to protect travelers from all over the world, Ice now spends his retired life enjoying rest and relaxation in the sun and mingling with the other retirees at Mission K9 Ranch. Ice is good with other dogs and has the fun-loving energy of a young pup.

UNIX

Unix is a nine-year-old male Belgian Malinois and German shepherd mix whose job was patrolling and searching for explosives with the United States Air Force. Unix is full of life and is currently the source of entertainment at Mission K9 Ranch, making the staff laugh every day with his joyful and charming smile. Unix is good with other dogs and is VERY toy motivated.

CEZAR

Cezar is an 11-year-old Belgian Malinois who spent his days sniffing out explosives and patrolling areas with the United States Air Force to keep our military and civilians safe. He came to us in Texas all the way from Japan! Now that he’s retired, he spends his days either relaxing in the yard at the Ranch or being a couch potato, hanging out with the Mission K9 staff. Cezar’s left ear was damaged at some point in his career, but as you can see from the photos, it only adds to his captivating character. Cezar is good with other dogs, and once he’s acclimated to his new environment, he is a mellow fellow, content with her enjoying his hard-earned retirement.

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