Sabi the bomb sniffing Australian Army dog found after 14 months MIA

November 14, 10:46 AMCable TV ExaminerChristine Nyholm

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In this photo taken Wednesday, Nov. 11, 2009, Australian explosive detection dog Sabi is photographed at Forward Operating Base Ripley in Tarin Kowt, Oruzgan Province, Afghanistan. Sabi that disappeared during a fierce battle in Afghanistan between Australian troops and militant fighters has been found and returned to its unit after more than a year. Sabi was with a joint Australian-Afghan army patrol ambushed in restive Uruzgan province in September 2008, but there was no sign of Sabi after the battle that followed - until now.
(AP Photo/Andrew Mearse, Pool)

Sabi, the bomb sniffing Labrador that served with the Australian Army in Afghanistan has been miraculously found, after being missing for 14 months. Sabi is a military dog who had been missing in action and presumed dead after a bombing in Afghanistan. The Australian troops happily welcomed Sabi back according to a news report on BBC from November 12, 2009.

American soldiers rescued four year old Sabi, who was found in the remote mountains of Uruzgan province, deep inside Taliban territory. The canine received a celebrity welcome from General Stanley McChrystal, head of Nato troops, and Australian Prime Minister Keven Rudd, who saw Sabi during an overnight trip as he visited Australia's servicemen.

Mark Donaldson, Sabi's handler, won a Victoria Cross for drawing enemy fire so that his wounded comrades could be evacuated. After repeatedly drawing enemy fire, Donaldson ran across 80 yards of open ground to rescue a wounded Afghan interpreter.

After the dust cleared the soldiers found no sign of Sabi, a dog trained to detect explosives. The Australian troops searched, but could not find her and assumed that she was dead.

The black Labrador was spotted by an American soldier, identified only as John, near an outpost in the northwest of the province. The Americans were aware that the Australians had lost a dog and realized that this lost dog matched the description of the missing Lab.

The dog's trainer verified her identity by testing her with a familiar game of catch they had played during her training.

Sabi was airlifted to Australian headquarters in Tarin Kowt, the provincial capital. The canine was reunited the the Australian Army's working dogs unit.

The story of Sabi is an illustration of the bond that can form between man and dog during the stress of war. The Military Channel is broadcasting a show about the comfort that dogs can offer to military people in the upcoming  documentary  “No Dog Left Behind.”

The Dog Whisperer on National Geographic Channel

The Military Channel Return Salute