While in Iraq, Marine Major Brian Dennis and an Iraqi stray dog — later named Nubs — developed a friendship that turned into a lifelong companionship. Major Dennis (along with Kirby Larson and Mary Nethery) has since written a children’s book about his buddy: Nubs: The True Story of a Mutt, a Marine & a Miracle.
Dennis and his unit, part of a Border Transition Team, were deployed to help train Iraqi soldiers at a fort 15 miles east of the Jordanian/Syrian/Iraqi border, traveling between the fort and their forward operating base. During one of those visits, as Brian stepped out of his humvee, a mid-size dog resembling a German shepherd came up to the major. Nubs was the alpha dog of a pack of 12 to 15 strays. Says Nethery: “It was like the alpha dog meets the alpha Marine. It is definitely fascinating how that happened.” Tweet