Marley, an Anatolian shepherd, will be coming to Lancaster County in mid-April after being rescued in Afghanistan by a group of U.S. soldiers, including one from Ephrata.
Moose is one of the subjects of Operation Red Horse Pups, an effort to raise enough money to bring to the United States a group of dogs that were rescued by U.S. soldiers serving in Afghanistan.
When the U.S. soldiers saw the tiny puppies tucked inside a cave in the mountains of Afghanistan, their hearts melted.
No mother dog was in sight. It was December. It was frigid. It was wet. One of the pups had died.
The soldiers, including one from Ephrata, sprang into action.
And that's how Moose, Marley, Trixie, Bella, Heffa, Cincy and Bama came to be honorable members of the 201st Red Horse Squadron of the Air National Guard, which is based at Fort Indiantown Gap.
It's a cute story, but it doesn't end here.
As the weeks went on at the soldiers' Afghan base, the pups grew larger. The soldiers grew to love them. And the time grew near for the soldiers to return home.
Faced with the prospect of abandoning the little dogs to the harsh mountain terrain, the soldiers wondered if there would be a way to bring the pups back to the United States.
Ryan Mumma, an Air National Guard staff sergeant from Ephrata, reached out to his wife, Rachel, and one of his sisters, Kristin Bittner, here in Lancaster County.
Could they help find a way?
They could, and they did.
It wasn't easy and it won't be cheap, but "Operation Red Horse Pups" hopes to raise money to bring the dogs back to the states in another month or two.
Rachel Mumma, 24, said she and her sister-in-law did online research and found the Afghan Stray Animal League, an Arlington, Va., nonprofit that supports a shelter in Kabul. The shelter agreed to care for the dogs until they were spayed or neutered, had the proper shots and were old enough to travel.
The soldiers then found an Afghan man willing to twice make the seven-hour drive from their base to the Kabul shelter to transport the dogs.
During his first trip, the courier was arrested and detained for three hours by police suspicious of his unusual cargo. But he persevered, and the dogs now are in Kabul, waiting to come here.
The biggest hurdle, however, will be paying for the pups' airfare.
A U.S. representative of the Afghan animal league, who asked not to be named, said, "It's not cheap to ship them. It's like a refrigerator or a car."
The cost will be about $2,500 a dog.
The Mummas are reaching into their own pockets to ship Marley home. Two other dogs, Trixie and Bella, also have homes, thanks to soldiers who will pay for their trips.
That leaves four other dogs who need a way here, at a total cost of about $10,000.
The dogs are believed to be Anatolian shepherds, a working breed that ranges from 80 to 150 pounds when full-grown. The breed originated in Turkey and is known for its loyalty, independence and hardiness.
The soldiers reported that the dogs are kind and affectionate.
"They gave the guys love and companionship," Rachel Mumma said. "Ryan would say he was bored or watching movies when he was not working, or working out. All of a sudden he was telling me about the puppies. It gave them something to do that they actually enjoyed."
Operation Red Horse Pups is collecting donations though an online site, operationredhorsepups.chipin.com/operation-red-horse-pups to help ship the dogs to the U.S.
Bittner, a Mount Joy resident who is also in the Air National Guard, is collecting the funds, which have come from as far away as Japan and now total about $3,000.
Local fundraisers also are being held, including several at the Pancake Farm restaurant in Ephrata, where Rachel Mumma's mom used to work.
The restaurant is holding a sub sale and is now taking orders for sandwiches to be delivered Friday, March 19.
It will offer a table of silent auction items that will benefit the pups at a spaghetti dinner being held Saturday, April 17, at the restaurant for A Tail to Tell Inc., an organization that cares for dogs rescued from puppy mills.
The restaurant also is selling homemade dog biscuits and chocolate-covered pretzels to benefit the pups, said owner Kathy Styer.
"What these guys did, it just warms my heart," Styer said.
Rachel Mumma hopes Marley continues to warm hearts when the pup arrives in the U.S. in mid-April, shortly after her husband is scheduled to arrive home.
Mumma would like to train Marley as a therapy dog, and eventually take her for visits with veterans at the Lebanon Veterans Affairs Medical Center.
"Practically, she's a veteran herself," she said. "I think dogs can bring such joy to people. I think it would be amazing, and our way to pay it forward a little bit."