It was late—an indistinguishable, blearyeyed hour. In front of me was a large dog, snapping his jaws so hard that his teeth gave a loud clack with each bark. His eyes were locked on me, desperate for the toy in my hand. But he wasn’t playing—he was freaking out.
As I cautiously held my ground, his bark morphed from a yelp to a shout. Then he gave a rumbling growl. That was when my unease gave way to something far more primal: fear.
This was no ordinary dog. Dyngo, a ten-year-old, had been trained to propel his six-stone body toward insurgents, locking his jaws around them. He’d served three tours in Afghanistan, weathering grenade blasts and firefights. This dog had saved thousands of lives. Now he was in my flat in Washington, DC. Just 72 hours earlier, I had travelled across the country to retrieve Dyngo from Luke Air Force Base near Phoenix, Arizona, so that he could live out his remaining years with me in civilian retirement.
That first night, May 9, 2016, after we’d settled into my hotel room, Dyngo sat on the bed waiting for me. When I got under the covers, he stretched across the blanket, his weight heavy and comforting against my side. As I drifted off to sleep, I felt his body twitch, and I smiled: Dyngo is a dog who dreams.
The next morning, I gave him a toy and went to shower. When I emerged from the bathroom, it was like stepping into a henhouse massacre. Feathers floated in the air. Fresh rips ran through the white sheets. In the middle of the bed was Dyngo, panting over a pile of shredded pillows. Throughout the morning, his rough play left scratches where his teeth had broken the skin through my jeans.
This story is from the March 2021 edition of Reader's Digest UK.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 8,500+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber ? Sign In
This story is from the March 2021 edition of Reader's Digest UK.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 8,500+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber? Sign In
Culinary Grandes Dames
Paola Westbeek celebrates the women who have influenced her journey in gastronomy-from Elizabeth David and Julia Child to Nigella Lawson
My Britain: Winterton-on-Sea
WITH A BEAUTIFUL BEACH on one side and the Norfolk Broads on the other, Winterton-on-Sea is a lovely little village with a big heart.
Under The GRANDFLUENCE Prince Stash
From aristocratic, eccentric friend of Sixties rockstars to TikTok sensation
Steve Conte: If I Ruled The World
Steve Conte is a musician known for his memorable guitar work as a member of New York Dolls, as well as his collaborations with Japanese composer Yoko Kanno on the soundtracks to several hit anime series
My Great Escape: Rome, The Eternal City
Our reader Barbara Hull takes a Hollywood-inspired trip to Rome and reveals that some wishes really do come true
BOTANIC GARDENS OF THE WORLD
Tales of extraordinary plants, botanical history and scientific discovery
THIS BACON FAKERY MUST STOP
I WAS RECENTLY given bacon-flavoured dental floss for my birthday. My first question was: who the hell gives dental floss as a gift? My second question was: has bacon gone too far?
GOOD NEWS FROM AROUND THE WORLD
Meet the Crufts competitors who changed their owners' lives completely
HOME AT LAST!
A cat missing for ten years, a dog who disappeared during a wildfire, and more heartwarming true stories of pets who were lost then found
New Love Lexicon
Do internet terms help or hinder healthy romantic relationships?