REMEMBERING OUR CANINE VETERANS
Today is not for dog training. Today is for remembering and paying tribute. Americans everywhere are attending parades, visiting memorials, and praying for the men engaged in our current conflicts. For many, including me, it’s a bittersweet day recalling the names, faces, and places. For some, it is a day to remember the forgotten and obscure.
A handful of veterans and supporters will visit war dog memorials. These memorials stand as a tribute to our canine warriors- past and present. Relatively few Americans know of the duties performed by our various canine corps.
Dogs have joined men in battle since ancient times. Their exploits have been highlighted throughout history. The first recognized use of a canine corps in America was during the Seminole Wars in 1835. Since that time they’ve seen duty in Cuba, Central and South America, both World Wars, Korea, Vietnam, Southwest Asia, Bosnia, Kosovo, and all the smaller missions in between.
Canines have served as messengers, medics, sentries, and mascots. They have never been merely beasts of burdens, but warriors armed with training, instinct, and fight. They were and are an integral part of the their units. Dogs carrying medical supplies, detecting booby traps, finding weapons caches, and alerting on enemy presence have saved countless human lives.
Often the deeds of our war dogs have been relegated to obscurity. Unlike police dogs at home, the war dogs never had a great deal of visibility. Various organizations have worked for years to provide that visibility-to give the dogs the tribute they deserve-to show that they were something more than just a tool of the trade. It has taken years, but their efforts are paying off.
Monuments have been erected across the country and around the world. A bronze statue of a Doberman stands on Guam as a tribute to the Marine war dogs that served throughout the South Pacific. The monument was dedicated in 1994, the 50th anniversary of the beachhead on Guam.
Canine units from the Vietnam era are also gaining recognition. Handler organizations have done a tremendous job awakening the public. Thankfully, public opinion about the whole conflict has shifted. The fighting men and canines alike are getting the recognition they deserve. Several monuments have been dedicated at bases and stations around the country honoring the Vietnam canines. Heroic deeds are depicted in recent movies and documentaries. Hopefully these efforts will help ensure that canines are never again treated the way they were at the end of Vietnam.
Today canines are on duty around the world. The military continues to train dogs for their use. Trainers like myself train dogs for use on the home front. Their sentry skills and detection abilities are called upon daily. They find graves, drugs, explosives, firearms, and bad guys. On the home front they aid law enforcement in many of the same ways. Search and rescue dogs aided greatly in locating injured people in the rubble of September 11th. Service dogs will continue to excel when called upon.
Canine devotion to duty is enormous. They have proven themselves throughout history and around the world. America certainly didn’t invent their use, but canines have served her well. Let’s take time to remember ALL of the veterans who made us such a great country.
If you’d like to learn more about war dogs visit the library or search the Internet. A wealth of information exists. I invite you to be awed by the unbelievable accomplishments of the canines. Let me know what you think.
I’d also like to wish all Marines a HAPPY BIRTHDAY. Semper Fidelis.