Naval Hospital Bremerton staff didn’t really go to the dogs during National Dog Week.
Many were already there.
For the third consecutive year, nearly 50 dog-owners responded to a request to share an image of their canine companion(s) for the last week in September. The pictures were compiled into a visual digital display of 32 pages, ranging from lovable rescues to litter runts and many breeds in between.
There were working breeds represented, such as bloodhounds Ellie Mae, 8-year old and 2-year old MJ, of Amy Salzsieder, Occupational Health registered nurse, who are actively involved with the Kitsap County K9 Search and Rescue and National Search Dogs Alliance. German Shepherd Harley belonging to Terry Lerma, NHB emergency preparedness manager, has officially retired from her K9 Search and Rescue days and is content to catch up on napping, tasting treats and ensuring their home has a ready bark-alert warning system.
There’s Honey, a 9-year old Saluki mix which Cmdr. Laura Moody has had since 2019. She’s a former sled pulling dog from Oregon, while Aspen, a 7-year old Siberian Husky who Cmdr. Dean Kang rescued in Portland also in 2019, dislikes all delivery truck drivers.
Under the notable announcement, ‘fur missiles inbound,’ Chief Hospital Corpsman Justin Brown, sharing images of his family canine companions.
“Theodore is a 12-year old brown husky/lab mix. I’ve had him since he was five weeks. My first true love before I met my wife and had my kid,” explained Brown. “He was my running, hiking, truck, and gym buddy attached to my hip. Now old and has hip problems he hangs with mom, the one who feeds him, snuggles him, and is always around. Sampson “Sammy” is my Red Speckled Heeler mutt who’s 11-year old and found us during July 4 fireworks in 2013 when he was only a few months old. We were playing ball with Theo. He ran right up and started playing together. No one was looking for him, no one had reported him missing, and he had no ID tags or microchip. The shelter told us we can hold onto him for a couple weeks and if they don’t reach out with someone looking for him, we could keep him if we wanted. He adopted us and been spoiled ever since.”
Rebecca Drew, medical coder, shared her three fur babies, Rylee, 12-yr old black lab, adopted at 8-week old, Zola, black lab/Great Pyrenees mix, 8-year old, adopted at six months, along with resident feline Maia, American short/long hair, 2-yrs old, adopted at 8-weeks who is readily accepted as part of the pack.
Staff were also introduced to Mochi, a 2-year old Havanese belonging to financial technician Jinky Angel.
“We adopted him when he was 10 weeks old in Goldsboro, North Carolina. He is originally from Yorktown, Virginia,” Angel said. “Mochi is a playful, sweet, and loving dog. He brings so much joy to our family. We relocated to Port Orchard last year and he loves Washington weather.”
The Kelly Gann household features hounds of plenty, all adopted from a coonhound rescue, with Jester, a five-year old Treeing Walker Coonhound, Elly Mae, 6-year old Treeing Walker Coonhound, Shira, 10-year old Bluetick Coonhound. and Samantha, 11-yr old Treeing Walker Coonhound.
Hospital Corpsman 2nd Class Cade Crenshaw showcased Winston, a two-year old Pembroke Welsh Corgi. “I’ve had Winston, affectionately referred to as ‘Winnie’ by many, since he was six months old. He loves playing fetch and running outside in the grass at the park,” shared Crenshaw.
There were other submissions shared who were slightly less active, such as Violet, from Motta Sant'Anastasia, Sicily. According to Cmdr. Kevin Johnson, Navy Medicine Readiness Training Command Bremerton Detachment Puget Sound Naval Shipyard interim officer-in-charge, she is quite possibly the laziest dog in the Pacific Northwest, clocking an average daily combined sleep duration of 20 hours. Johnson also notes Violet openly protests walks by laying on her back in the middle of sidewalks or streets.
Along with the personal connection with canines for many, the U.S. Navy has long had an affinity for dogs.
Not only do dogs provide specialized services in the Navy such as explosive and narcotic detachments, they also provide security patrols from the routine to crucial operational missions.
Dogs have also been haze-gray underway and not just as official mascots. Most notable has been Capt. Demo, a golden retriever/lab mix on USS Dwight D. Eisenhower (CVN 69) during their extended nine month deployment to the volatile waters of the Middle East, providing comfort, companionship and curative as only a canine can.
Dog gone it, indeed.