A Vietnam War memorial wall contains thousands of names of soldiers who made the ultimate sacrifice, but for veteran Terry Kehoe, some names are missing.
Prince was a scout dog who detected bombs and enemy combatants. Terry Kehoe recalls that after the war, Prince was euthanized like the majority of the 4,000 deployed dogs. "I had him for 9 months, and we scouted for the infantry," Terry Kehoe said. Every day, on every mission, Terry Kehoe and Prince risked their lives to lead their unit through the Vietnamese jungle. "He saved my life and probably saved many others."
Whether in the air, on the field, or at the base, a soldier and a dog became best friends in the middle of war.
"I wish this were a photo from today," Terry Kehoe said. "I’m lucky that my name isn’t on that wall, I can still remember all those moments." The photo showing him smiling with Prince was the last one they took together. Terry Kehoe didn’t know he was seeing Prince for the last time and that almost all of these war dogs would be sacrificed. "We assumed the dogs would be reassigned, but later we learned they had been euthanized at the end of the war because they were considered surplus equipment."
Terry Kehoe returned to the United States in April 1971, and in July 1971, his unit was disbanded. The dogs were flown to a clinic at Cam Ranh Bay, Vietnam, to be put down. More than 4,000 war dogs served in Vietnam, but only about 200 of them returned to the U.S., while some were handed over to the South Vietnamese Army.
His emotions and memories resurfaced as he recalled that moment: "I just needed more time to say goodbye. And that’s very hard because I said goodbye to Prince in Vietnam, but I didn’t know he would face this fate; it wasn’t a farewell for me." Then Terry Kehoe, sitting in the grass, indifferent to the crowd, gave a final true goodbye to his partner after 50 years. "I would tell him that I love him… I miss him… I would love to hug him right now. It would be wonderful." The bond between Terry Kehoe and Prince remains stronger than ever.
Terry Kehoe, who lives in Florida, has joined the The Boss Legacy Inc. foundation, which works to ensure police and military dogs receive recognition and a retirement worthy of their devotion.
Source winknews.com
