Fort Wood USO Dog Will Appear On A Star-Studded TV Show Later This Month

American Humane on Monday announced the winner of the 13th annual Hero Dog Awards, a nationwide contest to find and celebrate the country’s most courageous canines.
America’s 2023 Hero Dog, a Missouri-based Great Dane named Maverick from Fort Leonard Wood took home the top prize for his inspiring work supporting the U.S. military as a United Service Organizations (USO) therapy dog.
Maverick and four other finalists will be honored at the 13th annual American Humane Hero Dog Awards® and Gala in Palm Beach, Florida, on November 10th, a star-studded awards show that will be hosted by Christie Brinkley and Carson Kressley.
The event is presented by Lois Pope and the Lois Pope LIFE Foundation and will be nationally televised on A&E on November 26th, and on Thanksgiving Day
Maverick and his handler Kelly Brownfield first met in 2016. There was an instant bond with the then 12-week-old puppy. Kelly, who had previous therapy dogs, spent the first year rigorously training Maverick, which helped him pass his therapy dog certification test with flying colors in 2017.