Pup Harley gets OK to stay with vet
Harley’s home!
An American combat veteran was celebrating victory Thursday as the feds agreed to allow the dog he adopted on the battlefield to stay in the U.S.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention scrapped a deportation order for the 1-year-old pooch — setting up a heartfelt forthcoming reunion with Staff Sgt. Amjad Kirrish (inset) at JFK Airport.
“We are eternally humbled and grateful,” Kirrish said. “We are counting down the days to be reunited with our little girl, Harley.”
The veteran from southern California paid tribute to Paws of War, the Long Island nonprofit that helped him bring Harley from the Middle East, and Rep. Kathleen Rice (DN.Y.). who got a bipartisan group of lawmakers to plead for a reprieve.
“Words cannot describe the appreciation that my wife and I have for all the hard work and support from every single person involved,”
Kirrish said.
“It’s so humbling to see all the support and to know how many people care,” he added.
It will still be about a month before Kirrish and his wife can reunite with Harley, who has to do a 28-day quarantine after being vaccinated Thursday.
It’s a happy ending to a man-and-his-dog drama that started months ago on the harsh battle zone of an undisclosed nation. The staff sergeant and members of his unit were on patrol when they first spotted Harley as the only surviving puppy from her litter and quickly won the heart of Kirrish’s Air National Guard unit.
Paws of War won permission to bring Harley to the U.S. to be reunited with the veteran, who doubled as a firefighter on the front lines of California’s disastrous wildfires.
Harley finally arrived at JFK on a repatriation flight last week, but officials rejected her entry application due to a paperwork mistake. gonna be heading