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The Dayton International Airport was the scene of a beautiful moment this week, as a U.S. Air Force Canine Handler was reunited with her former partner.
Floor, a Military Working Dog, and SSgt. Amanda Urie, were a K9 team based at Kunsan Air Force Base, South Korea, where they conducted daily routine Air Base Defense, according to a news release. Floor, now 11, was trained as a narcotics detection dog and spent her entire career at Kunsan.
Ssgt. Urie’s tour ended in 2015, Floor stayed behind, but Urie remained connected to the kennel in Korea — intent on adopting Floor when she retired. The Military Working Dog Team Support Association supported Floor while she was in South Korea and put SSgt. Urie in contact with other organizations that could help her with the adoption.
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“A lot of butterflies, brought back memories,” Urie told the Dayton Daily News after the reunion. “It’s almost been three years since I’ve seen her. Definitely very rewarding, and it didn’t feel real at first, but yeah, it’s here. My heart started beating a little bit faster, and I was a little bit nervous, but it was good.”
The two organizations, Mission K9 Rescue and United War Dog Association, often partner together to reunite handlers with their canine partners.
Ron Aiello of The United States War Dogs Association, who was a Vietnam canine handler, said in a news release, “Military working dogs have been a vital, life-saving part of our armed services and they deserve our support when they can no longer work. We’re honored to make the reunion of SSgt. Urie and MWD Floor possible.”
