ROANOKE, Va. (WFXR) — One US Army veteran has been reunited with an unexpected friend he met while deployed in Kosovo. Tadeus (Tad) Makowski was serving in the National Guard when he bonded with a stray dog he named “Gus.”
With the help of the organization “Paws of War,” the soldier was able to have Gus taken back to his hometown, where Gus waited eagerly for 6 months until they could be reunited. Now, the two are hitting the road visiting friends, family, and even one of Gus’ fans from TikTok.
Tad says the second Gus walked onto his base in Kosovo– they instantly became the best of friends.
He says he has taken Gus all over the map the last few days, from Philadelphia, Washington DC, the Shenandoah National Park, and of course, the Star City.
“He was just looking around for food, and he was adorable, and me and a bunch of guys were just kind of sad of seeing him being cold and searching for food so we ended up taking him in,” said Makowski.
Makowski says even though they had no dog food on the base, he was more than happy to share his leftovers with his new furry friend.
“Just every morning and every evening I just loved seeing him and spending time with him,” said Makowski.
Knowing he couldn’t leave Gus behind when he went back to the United States, Makowski reached out to “Paws of War” an organization that helps servicemembers reconnect with animals they meet overseas.
The organization got to work getting Gus out of Kosovo and taking care of any medical needs– before transferring Gus back to Makowski’s hometown in Indiana, where he waited patiently for him to return home.
“His tail just kept doing a helicopter thing, going around and around in circles, I was over the moon to see him,” said Makowski.
Co-founder of “Paws of War” Robert Misseri, says so often servicemembers connect with stray animals while overseas and are heartbroken when they have to leave them behind.
He adds that the animals are often abused or live in poor conditions until the servicemembers take them in… creating a bond that their organization works to preserve beyond deployment.
“He couldn’t tell Gus that he was leaving because he had to, and he couldn’t tell Gus that he was praying and that he had reached out to paws of war and that someone would come to get him, but Tad had to count on us if we let him down, we let Gus down,” said Misseri.
Misseri says since “Paws of War” started in 2014– they’ve helped reconnect more than 600 animals with service men and women completely free of charge and says that number is growing quickly.
“It’s an important thing for anyone who loves animals knows that bond, and when you break it, you break your heart,” said Misseri.
“Paws of War,” says in addition to reuniting service members with animals… it also helps them find temporary fosters or new homes for their animals if they get deployed.
If you want to learn more about the organization, you can visit their website here.
