Wife told deployed man 5 years ago his dog was put down. A Texas rescue just found him
In 2019, an Army soldier deployed in Iraq got a call from his wife saying his beloved dog Sebastian was due to be euthanized and she wasn’t going to save him, according to a Texas nonprofit.
For the last five years, Sebastian’s owner, Derrick Hancock, believed he was dead.
“He was my only best friend,” Hancock told KVUE. “That was my only dude.”
Then, on Sept. 22, 2024, Hancock received a message from the nonprofit organization Texas Critter Crusaders. The rescue group said in a Sept. 24 Facebook post it had picked up a dog in Taylor with a microchip registered in his name and old Fort Hood address.
Hancock adopted Sebastian before he was deployed when he was stationed at Fort Hood, the group said.
“He was confused and asked us if we were sure it was his dog,” the group said in the post.
On a long shot, Hancock, who now lives in Virginia, sent them a picture of Sebastian to confirm the match.
“Yep, that’s him!” the group responded.
The rescue group said they were shocked when Hancock told them his wife at the time “had purposely let his dog go” and that he believed Sebastian was dead all these years.
No one knows how Sebastian ended up in Taylor, a town about 60 miles southeast from Fort Hood. The group said he looked “very well taken care of,” and that “he had probably been rehomed” at some point.
“I can’t get excited until he’s in my arms,” Hancock told KVUE, saying that only then he’ll know he’s safe and they “can actually be a family.”
Texas Critters Crusaders said they are working to find Sebastian transportation from Taylor to Virginia.
