Sailors assigned to aircraft carrier USS Nimitz (CVN 68) volunteered to groom and interact with canines at the K9 Friends dog shelter, Sept. 28.

This event gave Nimitz Sailors the opportunity to take a break from their current deployment to the U.S. 5th Fleet area of operations, and also strengthened ties between United Arab Emirate locals and the U.S. Navy.

Sailors played with and cleaned dogs at the shelter. Many of the dogs at the shelter are rescues who are going through a rehabilitation process to re-associate them with people.

"We get a Navy crew in about every two months," said Liesel Clocko, a volunteer at the K9 Friends dog shelter. "It's really great for us because we can get all the dogs out at a time and start to socialize them."

K9 Friends dog shelter is a nonprofit organization devoted to reuniting lost dogs with their owners, or caring for them until new owners can be found.

Events like this are great opportunities for Sailors who want to spend their time interacting with the local population.

"I'm very blessed to be able to come out here and give my time to the community," said Culinary Specialist 1st Class Matthew Lako, a native of Cleveland. "I think it's a great thing to always volunteer and give yourself to someone's cause."

After leaving Dubai, Nimitz will continue conducting maritime operations in the Arabian Gulf.

Nimitz is deployed in the U.S. 5th Fleet area of operations in support of Operation Inherent Resolve. While in this region, the ship and strike group are conducting maritime security operations to reassure allies and partners, preserve freedom of navigation, and maintain the free flow of commerce.

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