On a wing and three legs

Buddy, a four-legged friend working in Baghdad, had to be flown back to Pretoria for emergency treatment after breaking his leg in an out-of-work accident.

The Springer Spaniel, a member of MineTech's elite explosives detection dog team, received first class treatment after his injury and a mercy flight back to the specialist team and medical equipment that would save his leg.

MineTech invested more than $15,000 flying Buddy safely back to the dog school, a trip which included a day and a half stop over in Dubai. The mission was not without its problems not least because of reluctance by the airlines involved to transport injured dogs and this difficulty was exacerbated by public holidays that officially closed Dubai.

MineTech Project Manager Frans Botha kept a round-the-clock vigil with Buddy while he was waiting for a flight home, sleeping in his room to monitor and assist him 24 hours a day.

Ten days after the accident Buddy arrived at Johannesburg airport where the South African State Department helped him on his way, providing a special grant for Buddy so he could spend his two-week quarantine period with Dr Japie Venter, the School's own vet.

With pins and screws in his leg, it was only a couple of weeks before Buddy was up and running around and was fit enough to start retraining. Confirms Dr Japie, "Buddy is a great dog and a real asset to the team. It's great to see him back on his four feet". Three months later and Buddy was back on board a flight to Iraq, to the delight of his handler, Takemore Maskasika, who was waiting there to greet him.

In between assignments, Buddy is busy entertaining the School's new Springer Spaniel puppies with his stories of "When I was in Iraq!"