The K9 above is Brutus, a military K9 at McChord.. ..
He's huge - part Boxer
and part British Bull Mastiff and
tops the scales at 200 lbs.
His handler took the picture.
Brutus is running toward me
because he knows I have some
Milkbone treats, so he's slobbering away!
I had to duck around a tree just
before he got to me in case he
couldn't stop, but he did.
Brutus was the recipient of the Congressional Medal of Honor
last year from his tour in Iraq . His handler and
four other soldiers were taken hostage by
insurgents. Brutus and his handler communicate by sign language
and he gave Brutus the signal that
meant 'go away but come back
and find me'. The Iraqis paid
no attention to Brutus. He came back
later and quietly tore the throat out of
one guard at one door and another guard at another door.
He then jumped against one of the doors repeatedly
(the guys were being held in an old warehouse)
until it opened. He went in and untied his handler and
they all escaped. He's
the first K9 to receive this honor.
If he knows you're ok, he's a big
old lug and wants to sit in your lap.
He enjoys the company of cats.