After U.S. Army Specialist Vance McFarland returned home from duty in Iraq, he had no idea what had become of his canine partner, a 5-year-old Czech Shepherd named Ikar.
But thanks to a tenacious rescue organization, Ikar and 10 other military dogs recently found new homes with their former handlers.
According to KTVB-TV, McFarland and Ikar served together in Afghanistan in 2012. Ikar is a Tactical Explosive Detection Dog (TEDD), which, McFarland says, means he and Ikar “went to Afghanistan and found roadside bombs, IEDs.”
The work was hard but having a dog alongside him made it easier, McFarland told KTVB. “Having a dog with you on deployment is almost like having a little bit of home.”
McFarland and Ikar were sent back home to the United States in Sept. 2012 only to be separated.