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| This memorial to Australian War Dogs is on a quiet corner of the Derwent in Hobart |
I didn't write anything this ANZAC day - our commemorative day for the War Dead, this year, but the other day while walking along the river with a friend and her dog, I came across a touching memorial for the dogs used by Australian soldiers in wartime and I thought they and the other animals which also served - whether they wanted to or not, deserved a mention too. Dogs particularly, served in numerous roles. Here are some of their stories along with those of some of our other furred, feathered and even finned brothers (and sisters) in arms.
World War I
Rescue Dogs
Dogs have been used to rescue wounded soldiers since the late C19th when one Jean Burgartz, a German, began training 'mercy dogs' (Sanitätshunde) to go into battlefields seek out wounded soldiers, bring first aid supplies and comfort the dying. If their wounds were too severe, they would take back a piece of the soldier's uniform and lead a medic back to them. By 1906 France and Austria had them too and by the First World War, many countries including the UK and Russia were also using dogs for this purpose, usually trained by the Red Cross in their respective countries. Russian rescue dogs were even trained to drag injured soldiers back to base.
The Americans didn't train their own dogs for this purpose since theirs were mainly used as guard dogs, but 'Sergeant Stubby,' a stray of unknown breed, became a hero for doing much the same, as well as alerting sleeping soldiers to the presence of toxic gas with which he had had a previous unpleasant encounter. He was duly honoured with numerous medals. Back in America he enjoyed a second career as a popular football mascot and when he did finally die -of natural causes, his body was sent to the Smithsonian Museum to be preserved and shown along with his medals.
Messenger Dogs
By the beginning of WWI, Germany had around 6,000 trained dogs, but used an estimated 30,000 dogs throughout the war, not just for rescue work but also as messengers. While they are credited with saving many thousands of lives, an estimated 7,000 also lost their own.
The Germans selected only the smartest of canine recruits for messenger duty, with the record being held by a German Shepherd named Caesar who could cover 10½ miles in just 32 minutes.
Other countries used messenger dogs too. A French messenger dog named Satan at the 1916 Battle of Verdun, continued to race through artillery fire wearing a gas mask, carrying a message on his collar, despite being shot twice and losing the use of one leg. At first Satan stumbled and fell, but his handler Duval got up and called out to him from the trench. By doing so, Duval himself was shot dead almost immediately, but Satan heard his voice and got up and ran on three legs until he reached the trench. The message read: "For God's sake, hold on" because relief would be arriving in the morning.
Pigeons, the Long-Distance Messengers
I think it's hard for us now with all our satellites and electronic devices, to understand how important pigeons were in warfare and why so many of them feature in the Dickin Awards. Dogs could only carry messages for around 10 miles or so, but pigeons were used extensively over longer distances in both the First and Second World Wars and have their own collection of heroic tales. One of the clearest examples is Cher Ami, released in 1918 by a surrounded American unit during the Meuse-Argonne Offensive. Shot, half-blinded and missing a leg, the pigeon still delivered the message that stopped friendly artillery falling on its own side.
By the Second World War, pigeons were built into communications planning, and occasionally still outran technology. G.I. Joe carried a message in Italy that halted a bombing raid already in motion, sparing the troops it was meant to support. Others, like Mary of Exeter, simply kept going — patched up and sent out again, multiple times, because they worked.
Other birds, animals and even slugs were also pressed into service. During the First World War, canaries, songbirds and slugs were used to detect poison gas. Glowworms in jars were reportedly used to enable unobtrusive map reading in the dark.
Horses
Germany alone used millions of horses as pack animals for munitions and supplies. An estimated 8 million died during the war of starvation, overwork and disease. Any survivors which were not taken as reparations, were subsequently returned to farms from which they had been requisitioned because of severe food shortages. The 136,000 horses sent to Gallipoli by Australia were not so lucky — they couldn't easily be repatriated and there were fears that they would fall into the hands of the enemy, so all but one — along with 508 mules — had to be shot at the end of the war.
World War II and Beyond
By World War II the use of dogs for various purposes was well established and the US had also begun training 'casualty dogs.' In the 1940s the British used theirs to locate victims of air raids in bombed-out buildings, which included 40,000 dead and three times that number of wounded. Thorn, Rex, Peter, Rip and Beauty are among the many British dogs honoured for their gallant work in this era, leaping into smouldering, smoking ruins to rescue buried occupants.
In 1943, at the height of World War II, Maria Dickin of the PDSA, an English animal charity, had the Dickin Medal struck to honour those animals which had shown exceptional courage and devotion in war. It bears the words "We also Serve." Seen as the animal equivalent of a Victoria Cross - the highest honour bestowed on soldiers, it has since been awarded 38 times to dogs, 32 times to pigeons, 3 times to horses and once to a cat. You will read about some of their exploits here.
In the US, some dogs were trained to become parachute jumpers so that they could locate airmen whose planes had gone down in remote terrain.
Dogs were also used as attack dogs to protect troops trying to take enemy strongholds. Chip, an early American recipient of the Dickin Award, ran into enemy fire during a 1943 invasion of Sicily and disabled a machine gun nest and — single-handedly, or should that be single-pawedly? — caused three of its four gunners to surrender. He had the fourth one by the throat.
Among the less noble uses of its large contingent of trained dogs, Germany used them as feared guards inside concentration camps. The Russians had a sinister program of anti-tank dogs, where dogs loaded with explosives were trained to run under tanks. Unfortunately, they had been trained on the noise and smell of Russian tanks and often ran towards those instead. Even when a few succeeded in carrying out their mission, the Germans soon caught on to what the dogs were doing and shot them before they could do any damage, so that plan was soon abandoned.
Other animals including donkeys, camels, monkeys, dolphins, whales, Finnish reindeer and even bats have also been used for similar purposes, but such programs have now largely been abandoned for ethical reasons. As late as 2019, the United States Navy still retained some dolphins but not as killing machines, but to perform other tasks such as recovering or locating equipment.
Early Warning Systems, Sentry Duty and Trackers
Dogs have accompanied Australian soldiers since WWI and proved invaluable in the Pacific because they could detect snipers sneaking into camps long before humans were aware of them. Here are some of their stories. Unless otherwise stated the information is taken from the War Dog Memorial.
Horrie, an Egyptian terrier befriended as a puppy by Private Jim Moody in Egypt in 1941, followed the 2/1st Machine Gun Battalion through Egypt, Greece and Crete before being smuggled back to Australia in 1942. He could detect the sound of Nazi aircraft well before they were seen by troops. His fate after the war remains disputed — possibly switched with another dog by his devoted owner to escape destruction by quarantine officials.
Gunner (Darwin, WWII) — found as a six-month-old stray kelpie under a destroyed mess hall after the Japanese bombing of Darwin in February 1942. From February 1942 to November 1943, over sixty air raids hit Darwin, and Gunner warned the soldiers of nearly every one. He was also able to differentiate between Australian and Japanese aircraft and never barked at Australian planes.
Other dogs serving in the Pacific included Sandy (1943), a US-trained Scout and Messenger Dog which served in New Guinea; Coco, who gave early warning of approaching Japanese aircraft in the Solomon Islands; Gyp, Whiskey and Wallaby (1944), guard dogs with the 1st Beach Landing Battalion; and Rex (1945), who patrolled the perimeter in the Morotai Islands, then part of the Dutch East Indies.
Vietnam
Two dogs were assigned to each battalion in the Vietnam War. Their job was to find enemy combatants, wounded soldiers and hidden bunkers. Though not specifically trained to detect mines they often did that too. Six dogs lost their lives and it is to them that a special Reflection space at the above memorial is dedicated.
Sadly, quarantine restrictions prevented these dogs from returning to Australia, despite developing close relationships with their handlers and troops, but unlike the WWI horses, they were reluctantly left with Australian and European families who remained in Saigon.
Since then, pressure was brought to bear on the relevant authorities so that war dogs can now be brought home, though these days they are more likely to be involved in peacekeeping operations. Dogs which have served at least five years can now receive a Canine Service Medal or the War Dog Operational Medal if they have served overseas.
The Middle East and Ukraine
Mine and Bomb Detection
Dogs were routinely used in many combat situations as mine and bomb detectors and to flush out insurgents, but they really came into their own during subsequent wars in the Middle East. Although the technology of warfare had advanced greatly, dogs and other animals with their acute senses, were still able to do some things better - Sadie, a Labrador trained by the Royal British Veterinary Corps for example, could search eight cars for explosives in the time it took a human to search one.
They were also able to respond intelligently and immediately to unexpected situations on the ground and were prepared to lay their lives on the line for their human team members in ways that technology couldn't as even a cursory glance of the various Dickin Medal awards show, with many losing their lives in the process. Just a few examples follow.
By this time, the Americans were training dogs with multiple capabilities at once - protecting troops, hunting for insurgents, and detecting explosives. Multi -purpose dog Bass for example, who belonged to the US Marine Special Forces and served in Afghanistan, Iraq and Somalia, received a Dickin Medal for his work tracking, protecting troops and locating Improvised Explosive Devices (IEDs).
British Royal Army dogs Sasha and Theo lost their lives defending troops in Afghanistan in 2008. Kuga was the first Australian Military Dog to receive the Dickin Medal for his bravery in Afghanistan in 2011, after flushing out insurgents and taking five bullets so that human members of the regiment could take cover. Although he was returned to Australia, he died of his injuries a year later.
Mali, a British Army Belgian Malinois, was seriously injured by a bomb blast in 2012, as was Lucca, a German Shepherd belonging to the US Marine Corps — but not before she had carried out 400 missions in Afghanistan between 2006 and 2012. Although she lost her leg in her final mission she saved thousands of lives and was taken home to the US by the corporal who rescued her and was able to enjoy a happy retirement.
Leuk, another Belgian Malinois, serving with the French Military in Mali from 2017 to 2019 saved lives with his special ability to follow drones and detect IEDs. In 2019 he lost his life to an insurgent he had detected. He was so valued that his body was returned to France, draped in the French flag and given a guard of honour, as well as later being awarded the Dickin Medal.
British Royal Air Force dog Hertz was deployed in Afghanistan to detect drugs, electronic devices and communications equipment, undoubtedly also saving many lives. Hertz's unique set of skills hadn't been seen in a military setting before.
In Ukraine in 2022, President Volodymyr Zelensky awarded a Jack Russell Terrier called Patron -meaning 'cartridge,' the Order for Courage for finding 236 unexploded devices, especially land mines. Children's charity UNICEF made him their first AmbassaDOG, for teaching children about mine safety and when he isn't working, he does charity work at a children's hospital.
A Different Mine Detector
A statue was recently unveiled in Cambodia (4/4/2026) to commemorate Magawa, a giant African pouched rat which cleared land mines in Cambodia from 2016 to 2021, finding 71 landmines and 38 items of unexploded ordinance. Such rats have become vital allies in detecting landmines in Cambodia because they can detect traces of TNT and, being light enough at 1.5kg, will not detonate the mines themselves — and are much faster at detecting them than humans with a metal detector. Magawa died of old age in 2022 and became the first rat recipient of the Dickin Medal.
These are but some of the amazing stories about animals — some heartwarming and many heartbreaking — but there is another role which animals often play which is not so well documented.
Animals as Companions and Morale Boosters
Various animals were "enlisted " as pets and mascots, especially in the extremely harsh conditions of World War I. They included dogs, homing pigeons, foxes, goats, lion cubs and raccoons. In the Second World War, Polish soldiers purchased a Syrian brown bear named Wojtek who accompanied the 2nd Polish Corps to Italy, serving with the 22nd Artillery Supply Company. Since pets were not allowed, he was signed in as an ordinary soldier with his own paybook, rank and serial number and even earned his keep by moving ammunition crates.
Other animals were also smuggled into military bases and onto ships. Judy, a pedigree Pointer who had been smuggled aboard the British ship HMS Grasshopper in 1942, helped to save her fellow crew members when the ship was sunk. Alas, they were then rescued by the Japanese and transferred to a POW camp where Judy is credited with helping the men to survive the horrors of incarceration. Another story concerns Simon, an English cat who received his Dickin Medal in 1949 — the only feline to have received one to date — for maintaining troop morale and catching rats while the British ship he was on was trapped in the Yangtze River for three months during the Chinese Civil War, despite being wounded himself.
Cats were especially favoured. They not only kept down mice and rats but were thought to be able to detect the slight change in air pressure just before a bomb struck. They could also be more easily smuggled in and hidden - Less difficult than trying to hide a 440 Kg bear! - and did not demand much in the way of food or space. The US Navy seems to have been particularly fond of cats which provided a pleasant distraction from monotony and stress.
Cats have also featured prominently in Ukraine.* With so many animals having to be abandoned by bombed out or fleeing citizens, it's not surprising that a goodly number have found homes among the soldiers in their bunkers especially in a cold Northern winter without light or heat, while facing imminent destruction. They not only keep soldiers company and stop rats from chewing through rations and communications equipment, but have also won hearts on social media which has helped to raise funds for Ukraine's war effort.
There are many more heartwarming and heart breaking stories like this here or here. They remind us that even in the most terrible of circumstances, soldiers remain capable of tenderness and may still be comforted by warm furry creatures while confronting fear, isolation and death.
War Animals Remembered
Several countries observe Purple Poppy Day on February 24, including Australia, New Zealand, the UK, Canada, France, South Africa and the USA, in honour of those animals which have served and died in wars. This was only announced in Australia in 2019, which may explain why I hadn't heard about it before. Some countries celebrate Purple Poppy Day on August 23, in memory of the Battle of Mons, a significant event in WWI in which many horses died. Because Purple Poppy Day is not yet mainstream in Australia, some local initiatives have used a Blue Poppy as a symbol instead.
Noble as the deeds recounted here are, I would much rather that neither animals nor humans were still being killed in wars. The original ANZAC Day was after all, a not a celebration of war, but a mourning about all the senseless suffering and death and a silent promise not to allow it to happen again. You would think by now we would have learned to do better. Instead, we are allowing the rules, institutions and ideals which have kept us safe for the last 80 years to crumble, to be disrespected and ignored. That is what we should be fighting for now. No dogs or other animals needed.
Lest we forget.
Thanks to Copilot for the purple poppy, also Claude for help with formatting and references and Ecosia AI and ChatGTP for whenever I have run out of free chats with one or the other.
*PS: If you want to help the thousands of abandoned animals in Ukraine or other regions, contact the Network for Animals here.
By the way, the PDSA in the Mary Dickin Awards stands for the UK animal welfare charity originally known as the People's Dispensary for Sick Animals of the Poor, which was started by Mary Dickin in 1917, after seeing the suffering of animals in the slums of London. She was determined that the pets of poor people should receive proper care, even if their owners could not afford it. As well as fostering the awards, the PDSA helps more pets than any other animal welfare organisation in the UK, so they would no doubt appreciate support too, especially if you are in the UK.
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