NIU played host to a four-legged furry hero during “The Other Forgotten Veteran,” a program sponsored by Save-A-Vet.

Save-A-Vet is an Illinois-based non-profit whose mission is to rescue retired canines who have served in American military or police forces. Danny Scheurer, CEO of Save-A-Vet, was the speaker at Wednesday’s event and gave his personal insight as to why the military dogs should be rescued.

“When I was deployed, a dog saved my life on two different occasions,” Scheurer said. “On average, these dogs are saving three to five soldiers a day when they are in the field.”

Save-A-Vet was started in 2007 as a way to save military dogs from euthanasia. Lackland Air Force Base is home to the Military Working Dog (MWD) school, where they rehabilitate and adopt out retired military dogs after service if they are deemed safe for public adoption. Save-A-Vet works to rescue the dogs who don’t pass the MWD adoption testing, Scheurer said.

“Ninety percent of dogs who get tested at Lackland end up failing their test for one reason or another,” Scheurer said. “Sometimes it’s their attack training or their injuries, but these dogs need homes.”

Save-A-Vet operates 13 different properties around the country and all are staffed entirely by disabled veterans. Scheurer said the group only hires veterans because the dogs who fail their adoption-readiness tests can only be granted to citizens with a Department of Defense security code for liability reasons. The Department of Defense categorizes MWDs as equipment that can only be cared for by military personnel.

“The department doesn’t have a problem with us because in their eyes we just hire someone with a security clearance to live on a secure facility and take care of hazardous equipment,” Scheurer said.

Andrew Hubbartt, a benefits counselor for Military Student Services, said the office tries to find organizations that can help or be helped by veterans on campus.

“We try to find programs that people are interested in,” Hubbartt said. “We host several events like the Save-A-Vet program so that the campus can get involved with these organizations.”

For more information on Save-A-Vet, visit its website at www.save-a-vet.org, or by contacting Military Student Services at 815-753-0691.