Just when you thought the Afghanistan withdrawal couldn’t get any more upsetting!
The Biden administration said it plans to rescue the military working dogs that were abandoned in Afghanistan. However, the contract working dogs will be left behind because they are classified differently.
American Humane, an animal welfare group, condemned the actions of the Biden administration and said the president’s mishandling of the withdrawal has sentenced these innocent animals to a cruel death.
“I am devastated by reports that the American government is pulling out of Kabul and leaving behind brave U.S. military contract working dogs to be tortured and killed,” Dr. Robin Ganzert, president and CEO of American Humane, wrote in a statement on Monday.
“These brave dogs do the same dangerous, lifesaving work as our military working dogs, and deserved a far better fate than the one to which they have been condemned,” she went on. “It sickens us to sit idly by and watch these brave dogs who valiantly served our country be put to death or worse.”
American Humane helped to rescue the military’s animals during the First World War, at the request of the Cabinet. The organization remains active in disaster relief, and it has rescued service animals during Hurricane Katrina and the Sept. 11 attacks.
More recently, the group has become known for the certification, “No animals were harmed in the making of this film.”
On Monday the group offered to assist the Biden administration in evacuating the contract dogs. “This senseless fate is made all the more tragic, as American Humane stands ready to not only help transport these contract K-9 soldiers to U.S. soil but also to provide for their lifetime medical care,” Ganzert wrote.
Ganzert discussed the importance of pairing veterans with service dogs.
“American Humane has worked hand in hand with the military for more than 100 years to rescue military animals,” she wrote. “Since that time, American Humane served as a pioneer in the development of animal therapy for returning veterans, and today brings home retired military working dogs and pairs veterans with life-saving service dogs.”
Ganzert ended her statement with a call to action.
“In order to prevent this tragedy from occurring, these K-9’s should be loaded into whatever cargo space remains and flown to safety,” she suggested. “We call on Congress to take action to classify contract working dogs on the same level as military working dogs. Failure to do anything less, is a failure of humanity and a condemnation of us all.”
As of Aug. 31, Biden has withdrawn all American troops from Afghanistan.
The future looks unclear for those Americans — and service animals — he left behind.
The Horn editorial team