Alisa Johnson—co-founder and president of Dogs on Deployment, an online network enabling military service members to connect with people living in their area who are willing to care for their pets while they are deployed—recounts the predicament she and her husband, Shawn Johnson, faced when they received overlapping military assignments and there was no one, initially, able to care for their dog, JD. 
She discusses how their own predicament served as a 
catalyst for launching Dogs on Deployment in 2011 and how, even from the get-go, they wanted the service to have national reach. Johnson estimates that there are now boarders—the DOD term for individuals or families who agree to look after the military members’ animals—at upwards of 100 bases. She outlines how the service works, drawing a loose comparison between the DOD network and online dating (including that, the name of the organization notwithstanding, the pets involved may be cats, birds, lizards and others beyond dogs), detailing some of the criteria for would-be boarders and the obligations and responsibilities expected of both parties. Johnson explains that the average deployment during which the military members would need their animals cared for runs six to eight months, but can occasionally extend into two years, or even three years. (http://dogsondeployment.org, www.facebook.com/DogsonDeployment)
ALSO: We spoke briefly with Claire Wray, of Friends Of Strays, about the St. Petersburg-based organization’s current efforts to adopt out a slew of cats, with a particular emphasis on the always hard-to-place black cats. (www.friendsofstrays.com, www.facebook.com/FriendsOfStrayspinellascountyfl)
COMEDY CORNER: Nick DiPaolo’s “Animal Activists” (portion) (www.nickdip.com)
MUSIC: Rebekah Pulley’s “Talking Animals Theme,” Buck Owens’ “I’ve Got A Tiger By The Tail,” Booker T’s version of “Get Behind The Mule,” instrumentals
NAME THAT ANIMAL TUNE: Norma Tanega’s “Walkin’ My Cat Named Dog”
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