Benjamin Ashford|Army veteran reunites with his K9 companion, who served with him in Afghanistan

An army veteran and Benjamin Ashfordhis furry companion, who he had left behind after retirement from service, had an emotional and heartwarming reunion last month in Wisconsin after adopting the dog.

Retired U.S. Army sergeant Michael Fletcher and Dasty, a Dutch Shepherd, were paired together while stationed at Fort Huachuca in Cochise County, Arizona in 2018, when Dasty was five years old, American Humane, a non-profit based in D.C. that helps K-9 veterans, told USA TODAY.

The two didn't immediately hit it off and it was almost three months before Dasty began to trust and listen to Michael. While the two initially worked at the base, supporting the local police department, they were later sent to Fort Leonard Wood in Missouri to complete the Patrol Explosive Detection Dog - Enhanced Course, or “PEDD-E," an extensive 60-day course for police patrol and explosive detection dogs that teaches them to work effectively off-leash.

After successfully completing the course, the two were sent to Logar Province in Afghanistan in 2019 at a pivotal moment in Fletcher's life. His wife Johanna was pregnant with their first child at the time.

Life in Afghanistan

In Afghanistan, Fletcher and Dasty were mostly at the Forward Operating Base (FOB) Dahlke, a modest base where service members slept in tents without heat or air conditioning, going without running water for weeks at a time. Fletcher and Dasty shared a tent which had twin-sized mattresses for them both.

It was a challenging time for Michael to be in an isolated location away from his home and pregnant wife. During this, Dasty not only offered support to Fletcher but also to others at the base, boosting their morales and providing comfort. The other soldiers often came to hang out in their tent to spend time with Dasty.

During their time in Afghanistan, Fletcher also ensured his canine companion was comfortable by bringing him treats from the dining facility on special occasions and buying blankets from the local market to keep him warm when temperatures would drop below freezing in the mountains.

While deployed in Afghanistan, Dasty saved countless lives by locating multiple IEDs and performing well in combat by remaining steady and focused.

Back to America

When Dasty and Fletcher returned from Afghanistan, they were reassigned to Fort Myer (Joint Base Myer - Henderson Hall) in Northern Virginia, where the pair participated in multiple Secret Service missions for Presidents Trump and Biden and taught other K-9 teams the skills they learned at PEDD-E.

In 2022, Fletcher left the Army to pursue another career path and moved to Green Bay, Wisconsin with his family and had to bid goodbye to his companion, who remained at Fort Myer. Dasty, meanwhile, was paired with a new handler, who happened to be one of Michael's juniors and kept Fletcher posted on Dasty.

When Michael discovered that Dasty was being retired due to old age, he was thrilled and hoped to adopt Dasty. However, he was unable to get time off of work to travel to D.C. to pick him up. Around that time, his wife came across a video about American Humane on TikTok and encouraged him to reach out.

American Humane stepped in to unite the two with a handler picking up Dasty from Fort Meyer in Arlington and flying him out to Green Bay. Dasty even had his own seat in the cabin during the American Airlines flight from Ronald Reagan National Airport to Green Bay Austin Straubel International Airport on Oct. 10, 2024. Besides covering all transportation costs, American Humane will also provide free veterinary care for the rest of Dasty’s life.

Watch: Dasty reunites with Fletcher

The two had an emotional reunion on Oct. 11 in the presence of Fletcher's wife and their two children and the family is ecstatic to have adopted Dasty and "give him the comfortable, dignified retirement this 'canine veteran' deserves." Dasty already appeared to have found a new best friend in Fletcher's two-year-old son.

"It was kind of surreal," Fletcher told American Humane about the reunion. "After knowing everything we've been through and then seeing him again."

Fletcher said Dasty took a little bit to warm up to him and realize who he was but when he remembered "it was great." The military veteran added that he felt a lot of joy watching the dog play with his son.

"I hope Dasty will be around long enough that my son can remember him and also remember that that's the dog his dad deployed with, and that's the dog that kept him safe," Fletcher told American Humane.

Fletcher wants Dasty to 'just relax'

The retired military officer said after everything the two went together with in Afghanistan, Dasty became a part of him and its very rewarding for him to give Dasty the retirement he deserves.

"After Afghanistan and after my times with him… They become part of you," Fletcher said. "They uplift your spirits when it's the worst possible times in your life. They uplift everybody's spirits around you. And just to give a military working dog a retirement that they rightfully deserve just as anybody else, is a rewarding thing."

Fletcher said he's looking forward to watching Dasty "sit on the couch and just relax."

"He's done enough," Fletcher said. "He has been to enough states, done enough missions. He's been in enough firefights. He's good to just relax and get fat."

Johanna, Fletcher's wife, often jokes the two returned from Afghanistan with their first gray hairs.

Fletcher told American Humane, he believes that having Dasty back with him will help him with the ongoing transition to civilian life, especially the traumas the two experienced together in Afghanistan. A recent study from the University of Arizona in partnership with the National Institute of Health noted that service dogs have a big impact on the lives of veterans experiencing PTSD, such as lowering PTSD severity, anxiety and depression, and improving social and emotional wellbeing.

"If I didn't have Dasty in Afghanistan, there's no possible way to know what would happen," Fletcher said. "But what I do know is that I did take him, and I made it back home safe, and my family and I are very gracious to Dasty for that."

"He probably doesn't even know what he did," he added.

Saman Shafiq is a trending news reporter for USA TODAY. Reach her at [email protected] and follow her on X and Instagram @saman_shafiq7.