HOUSTON—The Marines of the Lone Star Battalion are hoping to bring home one more member of their team—their unofficial mascot, a puppy they nursed back to health in Afghanistan.
The Battalion returned to Ellington Field Saturday after a year-long deployment, but they came back without the dog.
Sgt. John Staffen told KHOU 11 News they found the 9-day-old puppy at a gas station, during their seven months in Afghanistan.
"We were just gonna kind of keep him and kind of try to revive him. We just didn’t want him to die," said Staffen.
All of the puppy’s littermates perished, so the Marines talked the station owner into giving them the only survivor. Then, they took turns—during 24-hour security watch—caring for the dog. He survived, and they named him "Bill."
"I’m not gonna play the part of the tough guy here," said Staffen. "I might be a Marine, but you see a cute little puppy, and you get attached to him. And everybody did, and we all played a part [in the puppy’s survival]."
Staffen said CBS News Correspondent Lara Logan played a part, too.
Military regulations prohibit troops from bringing an animal back to the states. So Staffen said Logan volunteered to get the dog to a shelter in Kabul some 400 kilometers away when the Lone Star Battalion shipped out for home.
And now, through a website called getbilltotheball.org, the Marines are trying to raise the $3,500 needed to bring Bill to the states and his new home with Sgt. Staffen in Liberty County. The "Ball" is the Marine Corps Ball set for next month in Houston.
"We found him. We raised him and it just seemed like we’d be abandoning him if we left him there," said Staffen.
Staffen said Bill gave his fellow hard-core Marines moments of celebration—the first time he opened his eyes, the day he took his first steps.
"It’s funny looking back on it, but at the time it was genuine. You know, he was like our little son," Staffen said.
A son they hope will soon call America—and Texas—home.
