Ahead of ANZAC Day, we celebrate the four-legged heroes who have given their lives for Australia in active service, and learn of the tough road that still lies ahead for these brave veteran dogs in retirement.
They were a team of four in an Afghanistan village – two human, two canine. Their SAS unit had been hunting down a high-value target; subsequent firefighting had left casualties. Now, the quartet were scouting a safe place for a landing helicopter zone to evacuate the wounded. Ryan Wilson’s dog, Fax, was out front of the group when he suddenly darted down into the creek line.
“It was probably 50 metres in front of us, and he started engaging with the Taliban who were waiting there to ambush us,” he recalls.
“Unfortunately, the Taliban were able to shake him off and shot him point-blank. But it gave us enough awareness to react and neutralise the threat without either of us getting killed. I have no doubt that without Fax there we would have been.”
After warding off the new attack, Ryan tried to resuscitate his brave companion, but it was sadly too late.
“From that day forward, I decided to spend the rest of my career involved with dogs,” he tells The Weekly now.
At first, that took the shape of both dog handling and dog training for the SAS. Today, Ryan has co-founded a charity, Working Paws Australia, which raises funds to help former military working dogs in retirement.
For while we celebrate our human veterans for their service and the military funds any injuries sustained in service for life, the dogs aren’t as visible – or financially looked after in their retirement years. This is something that rankles Ryan. As he says, these dogs have been placed in equal danger. And that quite often leaves them with lifelong pain and illness.
“Anything we did, the dog would be with us,” he explains. “From fast roping out of a helicopter – free-falling from 14,000 feet – I’d have him in front of me. Swimming in by the ocean to the beach, they would be with us. They are asked to do quite a lot.”
Certainly, that was the case for Ryan’s service dog, Keni. The duo was paired together in 2013 and were on active duty until Keni retired due to injury in 2017.
“I’d finished in Afghanistan by that time, but we did a lot of trips overseas to the Philippines and around New Zealand,” Ryan recalls, adding they were on multiple Domestic Counter-Terrorism rotations. “We fast-roped at night into moving cargo ships, he did multiple free-fall jumps and swims in from the ocean.
“I noticed when he was eight that his sitting was a bit off, his leg was sticking out a little more than usual. We got some scans and could see he had some pretty bad swelling and issues on his spine. The vet said, ‘You can keep working him, but he’s going to deteriorate really quickly if you do.’ I said, ‘Nah, he’s retiring today so he can have a good life.’
“Keni’s now 14. He took to retirement well – I actually think he was always a pet at heart. He was on the couch and my bed really quickly. I’d take him to the beach, to cafes, down the river for a swim. He loves pats and cuddles, he’s super affectionate.”
Like all military dogs these days, Keni is a Belgian Malinois – a Belgian Shepherd sub-breed. They’ve replaced German Shepherds in service as they are smaller and lighter as well as more prey-driven.
“When they see something move, they want to chase it,” Ryan, who himself retired from active service in 2021, explains. “They’re very trainable and affectionate dogs who will do anything for their handler. They are a unique breed who don’t make the best pets unless you know what you are doing.”
So that means that when a service dog retires, they automatically becomes the responsibility of their handler. And that includes vet fees for life, which can be hefty due to their taxing working years.
“Even though the injuries and illnesses they are suffering from for the rest of their life were caused by their service, the military don’t fund any of that once they retire,” Ryan explains of what led to the need for Working Paws Australia, which he runs with fellow former handler Jase Kelly.
“That becomes a huge financial – and ultimately, mental – burden on the veteran to take care of this animal that’s been with them through thick and thin. I’ve seen a lot of guys get really mentally stressed when they couldn’t afford to pay the $10,000 their dog needed. They’ve got families and other issues”
Mikaela Hedges knows this story well. Having joined the army as a medic in 2015, she did a task with the Air Force dog handlers and was instantly hooked. Transferring across in 2021, she was then paired with Odin, who, being in peacetime military, was employed as base security at RAAF Pearce as well as working at the Avalon Air Show.
But while he mightn’t have been parachuting into combat zones, don’t think his job wasn’t physically strenuous. The monthly tactical assessments and demonstrations put a lot of stress on his body. At just five years old, Odin was medically discharged from the RAAF after receiving an Exercise Induced Collapse Syndrome diagnosis. This condition caused his legs to go limp while training. He now experiences ongoing pain after too much exertion. For now, monthly steroid injections that cost a couple of hundred dollars a pop help.
“But obviously the older he gets, the worse it’s going to get,” Mikaela tells The Weekly, adding it’s why a service like Working Paws Australia will be life-changing for her family, which now includes a one-year-old son.
“When you do your dog’s retirement, you are required to sign and say you take full financial responsibility. It’s something you do because you love them. And you know that the whole time they served with you, they would save your life. So you’ll do anything to save theirs.
“I’ve (also) just been medically discharged, and I’m being looked after by the military. I voluntarily joined, whereas these guys are born into it – they don’t have any other options. So the fact that they can go, “This is your life. You’re going to be a working dog, and you have no choice about it. And then, “Thanks for your service. Never talk to us again, and we won’t help you with anything?”
At this, Mikaela raises her eyebrows in disbelief, the suggestion of disparity clearer than anything she could articulate with words.
For most dog owners, pet insurance would help provide some surety against any vet or medication fees. But for these military dogs, that safety net doesn’t exist. Not only will any existing injuries not be covered, but the second you mention “working dog”, there’s no chance of an insurer signing you on for any kind of coverage at all.
Rebel Wheeler’s dog Kaiya was one of the lucky ones. She retired a month after her 10th birthday, her health fully intact despite her RAAF service. Rebel knew she’d be ineligible for pet insurance. However, she says now, “That dog has been by my side since day one, so money-wise, it means nothing to me when it comes to her health.”
Late last year, Kaiya began having breathing problems. After a series of X-rays and biopsies, the vet discovered a cancerous tumour on her nose. Rebel forked out several thousand dollars for treatment. Then, she was put in touch with Working Paws Australia.
When Rebel, who is still working at the RAAF, was transferred from WA to Adelaide, Working Paws helped with not just the transportation but also began picking up the bill for her ongoing medication. They will also help with ongoing surgeries as they are needed.
And it’s not just financially that Working Paws Australia help their registered dogs – and their handlers. Whip was the first ex-military service dog to be signed up for support. Having seen co-founder Jase Kelly post about the newly founded charity on Instagram, Taylah Cole reached out to him for help when Whip, having retired at eight due to medical reasons two years previously, began having what first appeared to be a severe arthritis flare-up but quickly became more serious.
Whip was living his best retirement life, Taylah tells The Weekly. Having been born, raised, and only ever lived on base, he’d never seen the beach before and fell in love with chasing waves. Puppucinos quickly became a favourite treat as well as “all the KONGS (dog toys) in the bloody world that he could find. When we used to work, they were held back as a reward tool, so he didn’t have free access to them.”
He also loved his new sister, Taylah’s pet German Shepherd, and the duo bonded immediately.
“(Working dogs) don’t get that socialisation with one another until retirement,” Taylah explains of Whip’s joy in his retirement years. “The two of them used to just chase each other around the yard. He fit into the house so perfectly.”
Sadly, just two weeks after sending that email, Whip, now unable to walk, was rushed to the vets, where Taylah was informed he was suffering from an aggressive, inoperable spinal cancer and would need to be euthanised.
On her way to that fateful appointment, Taylah received an email from Ryan offering financial support.
“It was the most beautiful email,” she says now as tears glimmer afresh at revisiting the grief of losing Whip. “I obviously had to email Ryan back and say, um, I’m so sorry if I’ve wasted your time, because he’s no longer with us. He’s passed.
“Ryan then reached back out to say, we’re so sorry but we’ll keep him part of Working Paws Australia to continue Whip’s legacy and so hopefully we can help dogs that fall in his position, I’ve a bit longer and help the handlers out where they need it.”Working Paws Australia have helped immensely. Especially in the grieving process of losing him. They continued to reach out to check in, and they put Whip and his story on their website and social media pages. On some of those hard days, I’d feel pretty defeated and so I’d jump on my phone, and his face would pop up as the first thing on my feed.
“The military is so well known for the camaraderie that it builds between members who serve together. However, the bond between a working dog and its handler is something a very small percentage of people in the world will ever experience. If you think about the camaraderie that the military builds between its soldiers and airmen, and seamen, you could probably times that double, if not triple, for the bond that you’ve got with these dogs.
“Because at the end of the day, like, you are their world. We are the ones who feed them, train them, and work them. We enrich their lives. And they don’t know that there’s another life out there until the day they retire. And that’s if they get to retire.”
Currently, Working Paws Australia is looking after 40 dogs across Australia. But this, Ryan knows, is only the tip of the iceberg. There are many more dogs who have yet to find their services. And while each surgery they fund is a sizable cost, the not-for-profit organisation has not received the Deductible Gift recipient status from the ATO, meaning any donations made aren’t tax-deductible. This can be a deterrent for large corporations and high-net-worth individuals. So Ryan is working on other ways to help their community.
They have reached out to pharmaceutical companies for donations of vaccines, flea and worming tablets and medications. They work with local vets who can also offer either comp or discount services. They’ve also shot a calendar showcasing a few of their four-legged charges and their handlers. Furthermore, you can purchase it on their website.
“And we want to raise awareness so that people understand what we do,” Ryan adds of another reason he’s talking to The Weekly today. “We also want to secure a line of funding, whether that’s government or a grant that can fund emergency surgery and ongoing expenses for vet bills.
“These dogs have done just as much service as us and saved dozens of lives, mine included.”
Find out more about Working Paws Australia – and the dogs they sponsor, as well as a tribute to Whip – at workingpawsaustralia.com.au.
This article originally appeared in the April 2025 issue of The Australian Women’s Weekly. Subscribe so you never miss an issue.
