I’m Writing a Book on Soldier Dogs, and Could Use Your Help!

Jake was not happy when he learned that Dutton Penguin wanted a solo head shot of me. He has grown used to always being at my side for my dog-writing photos. So we let him sit at my feet and we cropped him out. He'll never know. (Photo: Laura Altair Hanson)

My professional life is going to change dramatically for the next several months, Dogsters. I’m giving up all my freelance writing and editing jobs — except my Dogster blog! — to take on a very exciting new project: A book called Soldier Dogs, about incredible four-footed troops and their handlers.

I’ve been reading books on war dogs and dogs in history for a long time, and I’ve been writing about these amazing soldier dogs whenever possible. I am in awe of their feats, their loyalty, their enthusiasm for the job, and all the high-tech trappings used by some dog/handler teams.

So when literary agent Deirdre Mullane contacted me about writing a book on military working dogs (MWDs) after it came out that a dog was a vital part of the Navy SEAL raid on Osama bin Laden’s compound, I went right to work on the book proposal. It was the perfect fusion of my journalistic background and my fascination with these extraordinary dogs.

With very helpful guidance and editing from Deirdre, and the super agenting skills of my regular agent, Carol Mann (they decided to co-agent the book), we ended up with a bidding war among publishers last week. Once I spoke with Dutton Penguin executive editor Stephen Morrow, I knew I had to have him as my editor. I was thrilled when this worked out, and we’ve embarked on this remarkable project together.

The book is going to be a tremendous amount of work in a short time, but I am thrilled. The end result is going to be riveting. Soldier Dogs will look at every facet of military working dogs’ lives, and will tell engaging true stories of the extraordinary courage of dogs under fire, and the soldiers who share their fate. The book will explore the heroism and heartbreak of these faithful four-legged warriors and their devoted handlers.

Here’s how you might be able to help:

I’m looking for really interesting true stories about these dogs and their handlers — stories that demonstrate the deep bond between them, or exciting stories, or anything that help shed light on how they live and work together.

Sergeant Martinez and his dog, Argo II, practice an "over the shoulder hold" that helps build trust (U.S. Air Force photo/Airman 1st Class Allen Stokes)

If you know any military dog handlers (past or present, although present handlers will likely have to get the OK to speak with me) who have intriguing stories to tell about their time with their MWDs, I’d love know more about them, and to be able to communicate directly with the handlers. If they are not available for whatever reason, I could talk with their parents or spouses. You can go to my fledgling Soldier Dogs website and click on the “Contact” button to leave a secure message for me.

I’m also looking for people who adopted retired military dogs – especially people who still have the dog.

Note: Please don’t leave detailed information in comments below, as I might not be the only person writing about this topic right now! That said, I greatly welcome general comments below. If you don’t feel like heading to my website to contact me, you can leave a comment below simply asking me to contact you; I can view email addresses on my end, so I’ll email you back.

Please feel free to send this message out on Facebook,  interest groups,  and any veterans’ groups, local military organizations, or anywhere you think there might be stories. And while you’re out there, come on over to my Facebook page and Like it if you like!

I’ll be providing updates there as the project moves along.

Thank you!

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The adoption: Why I just love, love, love my writing partner

Dr. Becker and I are an odd couple, and everyone who meets us eventually will feel compelled to remark on it.

He’s a country boy, a dairy-farmer’s son, married for 30-plus years to the love of his life, Teresa. They are parents of two, grandparents of one, love to travel, are neat and organized people who keep a beautiful home. They’re conservative Christians living in extreme north rural Idaho, a state so “red” it bleeds off the map. He’s sensible and business-minded, thoughtfully sends hand-written thank-you notes  for everything and cards to his wife and children every day he’s on the road. He genuinely loves every new person and animal he meets.  He’s draws energy from a crowd. He’s a veterinarian, a healer, who loves his patients and their owners.

I’m a city kid, daughter of man who swore he never saw a horse without a jockey or member of the San Francisco PD aboard until he was in his 30s. I’m a never-married very liberal native of very “blue” California. I never wanted children, am a recovering never-again-will-I-be Catholic and a progressive Christian, have traveled pretty much only when I had to (which is lots) for work and would generally rather stay home with my animals, my garden and a good book. I’m neither neat nor organized, in any way. If I send a thank-you at all, it’s likely to be in a text message. I’m not very business-minded, and I’m often broke because I generally can’t be bothered to watch where my money goes (but at this, I’m getting better and will soon be completely debt-free). I never accept anything or anyone on face value. My house is in a state of constant deferred maintenance. I’m a journalist, asking questions and getting answers from people who often don’t want to talk to me. Crowds drain me of my energy.

He loves puns and silly jokes; I don’t. He loves Christmas; I ignore it. I love afternoon naps; he can’t imagine sleeping in daylight — there’s work to do! He’s an optimist; I’m a cynic.

He sees the best in everyone. I … well you get the idea.

And yes, as odd a business partnership as we are, it works. We get along famously; we rarely disagree. We love each other, and we consider each other family. His daughter, Mikkel, is like a niece to me. His wife, Teresa, is a source of courage, faith, inspiration and Snickerdoodles. I actually go a little ga-ga over their granddaughter, despite my general belief that infants are about an interesting as cabbage until they’re a year old or so.

That’s all the personal stuff. On the business front, in four years we’ve written so many books I have to pause to count them — 10? 12? — covered conferences and trade shows, written hundreds of articles and blog posts. And really, we’re just hitting our stride.

Sometimes I wonder how this all happened. After all, I’d known Marty for more than a decade before he called out of the blue to propose us doing a book together. “Why Do Dogs Drink Out of the Toilet?” was a New York Times best-seller, but even more important, it made us realize we loved working together, and so we joined forces, folding his syndicated column into mine and going forward with more … everything. He  stood by Christie and me when we broke open the 2007 pet-food recall story, even though we were reporting on industries run by people he often knew on a first-name basis, people he considered — and still considers — his friends.

But Dr. Becker always does the right thing. Always.

So why am I writing all this now? Because yesterday he did one of those “right things,” adopting a 2-year-old pit-Lab mix named Gracie who’d spent almost her entire life in the shelter. And because watching the video clip of him telling the shelter director of his decision just made me bawl as much as she did.

Go ahead: See if you can watch it an not do the same.

This is why I love having this man as my business partner. He’s the real deal.
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