Staying Fit
Staff Sgt. Angela Lowe hadn’t seen her former military canine, Szultan, in four years when she received a message from his current handler asking if she would be interested in taking him in once he retired.
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“For some of these dogs, if they’re dog-aggressive or food-aggressive, it makes it difficult, because some people can’t take that home,” said Lowe. “And I was a little concerned that he would get euthanized.”
A unique bond
As Szultan’s first handler, Lowe had a special relationship with the canine. He started out very temperamental, wanting to do tasks his own way and even leaving people bruised. Training him for service required a tremendous amount of work.
“I did make a deal with Szultan. I was like, ‘Hey, look, man. I know you’re grumpy. I need you to not bite me. Please. I’ll respect you. You respect me. And we will figure this out together,’” said Lowe. “After we did that, we started meshing. I was super proud of him. I absolutely could trust him one hundred percent.”
Unfortunately, due to the physical demands of training military dogs, Lowe’s body endured a lot of stress. She started to have problems with her hands and would often drop the dogs’ leashes. After undergoing two spine surgeries, Lowe was forced to medically retire from the Air Force.
“Leaving Szultan was really hard for me. You have your pets at home, and of course you love them, but it’s different,” she said. “It’s indescribable how bonded you are to your dog. I don’t think I’ll ever have a love for a career like I did with working dogs.”
After retiring from the military, Lowe thought about Szultan frequently, often wondering how he was doing. She messaged other service members to ask about him. But after a couple of years, she lost touch with them and moved to Pittsburgh to continue her education.
A chance reunion
When Lowe responded to the handler that she was happy to take Szultan into her home, she was told that she had only two weeks to retrieve him all the way from Charleston, South Carolina. Stretched thin between her job and school, Lowe was unable to make the 10-hour drive from Pittsburgh. Instead, she reached out to Mission K9 Rescue, a nonprofit that helps reunite military canines with their handlers.
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