COLUMBIA, SC (WIS) - Inside Carolina Pet Resort something has created quite a ruckus.
There are a thousand stories there, but never an adventure quite like Mary's. Kristine Priede of the Animal Protection League says, "She was found almost dead. They thought she was dead."
Mary is a Kurdish sheep dog. US special forces found her near death on the roadside in Iraq.
Priede says, "They were coming back from a mission. They were tired, just bone-weary, but they still stopped and picked her up. I think that in itself is remarkable."
They rescued her Christmas 2005, hence the name - Mary.
When the troops moved out, civilian contractors took care of her. But now they're leaving, and they can't take Mary.
"She lived her whole life never going two miles from her home town," says Priede.
But all that changed when Mary met a US diplomat with ties to Columbia. Now Mary is a jet-setter, leaving her home town of Erbil, Iraq, flying to Washington, D.C., ultimately landing in Columbia.
Along the way, Mary's traveled in taxi's, stayed in five-star hotels. Now she needs a permanent home, says Priede, "cause she more than anything wants to be an American citizen for real."
Priede says the story of the troops stopping to save the dog "just warms your heart. It warms your heart and soul."
Priede says that's a story everyone at the Carolina Pet Resort will remember, "I'll definitely remember. Mostly I'll remember it for the simple fact of how many people it took, that had to take an active role in getting Mary where she is today."
Mary has been adopted.
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