Forum Eerste Wereldoorlog

[Yvonne]

During the Middle Ages, dogs dressed in coats of mail fought alongside men and by World War I, France was using dogs in action on a more sophisticated scale than ever before, training them to search for wounded men.

Other nations followed France's lead. The British used dogs as messengers; the Italians, to deliver food to mountainous regions; and, by 1915, the Germans six thousand war dogs had rescued more than four thousand wounded men. From 1914 to 1918 more than seven thousand dogs were killed in action.

The War Dog Memorial



When World War I began, people began to hear about acts of bravery on the battlefields by dogs that had been pressed into service. These stories appear to have aroused in many, feelings of esteem for animals, and burial of all pets gained wider acceptance . In three years from 1914 to 1917 more pets were buried at Hartsdale than in the previous two decades. By the end of the war there were more than two thousand graves.

A move to honor all dogs that had served in war began at Hartsdale just after the 1918 armistice by a group of plot owners who desired to commemorate history's brave canines and the end of "the war to end all wars." Contributions from plot owners and the general public poured in as plans were made. Robert Caterson, a well-known designer and builder who had worked on many distinguished buildings including Grand Central station in New York City, was chosen to build the war memorial.

Using the finest granite from his own Vermont quarry, Caterson created a majestic ten-foot-high monument, which is topped with a bronze statue of a handsome shepherd dog, wearing a Red Cross blanket. At the shepherd's feet are a bronze helmet and a canteen. A huge American flag waves proudly above. A simple inscription graces the memorial:

Dedicated to the memory of the war dog. Erected by public contributions by dog lovers to man's faithful friend for the valiant services rendered in world war, 1914 - 1918.

A special ceremony is conducted at the foot of the war Dog Memorial every Memorial Day weekend to pay tribute not only to military dogs, but to all pets of service including dogs who assisted in the in the rescue mission in conjunction with the bombing of the Oklahoma City federal building in 1994 as well as seeing eye dogs and police dogs.
Koehler

Among the dogs of war at Hartsdale is "Koehler" who was donated to the Red Cross at the beginning of World War I by the German family whose name he bore. Koehler served fearlessly in the front lines; his tail was shot off in battle, and he received a decoration for bravery. The plucky dog was returned to the Koehler family at the end of the war, but circumstances did not allow him to settle into his former life.

The change came about because Arthur D. Gerard, an officer of the United States occupation forces, was billeted in the Koehler home in Coblenz. As the scars of war lessened, the German family and American became friends and when Gerard's tour of duty came to an end, an extraordinary thing happened: the Koehlers, as a token of their esteem, presented Gerard with one of their dearest possessions-Koehler.

It could not have been easy for the family to part with their dog, but their love helped make the separation possible. They knew Koehler would have a better life in America; there would be no shortage of food, and he wouldn't have to put up with the hardships the destruction of war had dealt his homeland. And, of course, Koehler would be with someone that he and they cared for a great deal. So it must have been with a mixture of sadness and relief that they said goodbye to their pet and their friend as the two left for a place thousands of miles across the sea.

As many immigrants before had found, the journey to the New World was not an easy one for Koehler. Because of the vagaries of military rules and regulations, Gerard had to smuggle Koehler aboard a troopship in a cramped barrack's bag, and he had to keep Koehler confined and out of sight during the transatlantic crossing. Upon the ship's arrival in New York, Koehler had to face a tedious and frightening journey through customs before he was finally on the soil of his new land.

On these shores, Koehler had one more hurdle to clear before he could settle down. Arthur Gerard was single and had no proper home for the dog. Mrs. George Homer Martin of Tarrytown, New York, Gerard's favorite niece, came to the rescue. She happily accepted Koehler from her uncle and took him home to live amid well-earned tranquility and love for the rest of his life. The Martins remember those years more than half a century ago, and to this day they speak of the enrichment Koehler brought to them.

When Koehler died at the age of twelve, Mr. and Mrs. Martin chose a place for him at Hartsdale that reminded them of the Koehler's original home, and they still visit him on the hillside under the majestic tree where he is buried.


© http://www.petcem.com/dogs_of_war.htm
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[Yvonne]

This major conflict saw the first large scale use of war dogs in military history, and it was no longer more or less haphazard but organized and specialized.

During World War I, vast numbers of dogs were employed as: sentries; messengers; ammunition, pigeons, and food carriers; scouts; sled dogs; draught dogs; guard dogs; ambulance dogs; ratters; Red Cross casualty dogs: and even cigarette dogs.

It's estimated that Germany alone employed over 30,000 dogs for such purposes and about.20,000 served with the French Army, the Italians fielded 3,000 dogs for the Allies, the British, Belgians and the Russians thousands more!

The United States (with the exception of some sled dogs, kept in Alaska) had no organized dogs units, but borrowed a limited number of dogs from the French and British forces for casualty, messenger and guard duty.

Many different breeds saw active duty during the war depend- ing on the job at hand. Bulldogs, Bloodhounds, Farm Collies, retrievers, Dobermans, Airedales, Jack Russell and Wired Fox Terriers, sheep dogs and German Shepherds were all used in a variety of roles. Purebreds did not have any advantage over mixed breeds, what was important was that they displayed the proper character.

Preferred were dogs of medium build and grayish or black in color, with good eyesight and a keen sense of smell. But the temperament and disposition of the dog usually came first!

Countless Red Cross Casualty Dogs, also known as Mercy Dogs, took part in World War I; they were first trained by the Germans in the late eighteen hundreds, and later adopted by the other European countries.

The Germans called them Sanitatshunde (sanitary); equipped with their saddlebags of medical supplies, they sought out the wounded, and gave comfort to the dying.

Thousands of soldiers, on both sides, owe their lives to these remarkable animals, yet the dogs only helped a small fraction of the casualties that numbered in the millions during the war.

Trench warfare and stagnant front lines ended with the Great War and with it the necessity ever to use the Red Cross dogs again

he messenger dogs, considered by some as the real heros of the war, were credited with indirectly saving thousands of lives, by delivering vital dispatches when phone lines broke down, in between units at the front and headquarters behind. Barbed wire, slit trenches, shell holes and chemical gases were among the many obstacles faced by these brave dogs.

While in the front trenches, it was sentinel dogs, that gave the soldiers advance warning of approaching patrols, preventing the enemy from getting close enough to use hand grenades.

According to Lt. Colonel E. H. Richardson, commandant of the World War I British War Dog School, the qualities necessary in a sentry dog are "acute hearing and scent, sagacity, fidelity, and a strong sense of duty." Although the sentry's mission was less spectacular than many wartime canine functions, it saved the most human life.

Two of the more unusual dogs that were used during the Great War, were the ratters, and the YMCA cigarette dogs. Ratters were the terriers, whose natural instincts helped to keep the rat infested muddy trenches clear; and the small Cigarette Dogs, sponsored by the YMCA, had the task of delivering cartons of cigarettes to the troops, stationed on the front lines.


Then there's one other type of dog, that we haven't mention before now, and that is the mascot.

Soldiers of both sides, adopted many dogs as mascots while fighting during World War I. Mascots, by their merry pranks and the keen interest they showed in everything that was going on; by their readiness to respond to every kind word and to every friendly act; by their courage, loyalty and everlasting good nature, they helped to relieve the feverish strains of war, and to keep up the morale of the men in the trenches as it seemed nothing else on earth could do.
Rin Tin Tin, for example, was a German mascot puppy, part of a litter of five, found by a Corporal Lee Duncan (1893-1960), from the 136th Aero Division. Duncan, along with others were scoutng the countyside looking for a new field headquarters, when they stumbled upon an abandoned German war dog station and the puppies. And the rest, as they say, is 'movie history!'

Rinty would grow up to be a matinee idol during the twenties and thirties and along with Strongheart, another dog movie star, added to the popularity of the German Shepherd breed.


The setting for World War I was very unique! Few could see how dogs could serve or even survive when the big guns began to thunder, and their shells blasted great, gaping crater out of heavily manned sections of trenches. When batteries dropped their steel curtain of high explosive called barrages with speed and precision in front of attacking waves.

When choking, blistering gas spread its poison vapors, and clung to the wet woods and the earth was a deep, stickly sea of mud and armies month after month lay locked in combat.

Yet remarkably it was under these forbidden circumstances of trench warfare, and in the face of the development of modern weapons, communications, and transportation, that the Dog of War really came into his own.

The Allies' Red Cross casualty dogs were trained to find the wounded and return to their handler with either the wounded man's helmet or someother part of his uniform, to indicate to their keeper, that they had located someone.

And the Germans dogs were trained to either carry the short brindel (or brinsel) leash in their mouth if wounded were found or to let it hang loose otherwise.

Although, the French general, Joffre, abolished all the Mercy Dogs in the French Army in 1915, a French Red Cross dog named Prusco was credited with saving the lifes of over 100 men in one day, including even pulling some back into the safety of the trenches.

As we previously mentioned, the Sentinel Dogs gave soldiers advance warning of approaching patrols, preventing the enemy from getting close enough to use hand grenades

One such sentry, was a French canine named Kiki, who was wounded in action against an enemy patrol and was evacuated for treatment. He was bandaged and was back at his post within hours, just in time to detect another enemy patrol before it could surprise his unit.

Another was Cabot, a powerful French sentry dog with a dash of bulldog blood in his veins, had an "unexpected pleasure one night of intercepted a German messenger dog and 'capured' its metal tube containing important enemy dispatches.

During the Great War, messenger dogs were sometimes the only way to communicate between the front lines and their headquarters, because of the broken radio lines. Dogs were ideal for this type of work, as they could run faster than a man and they presented a smaller target.

The World War I messenger dog had a difficult mission, not only did it have to travel great distances, often under fire, it had to overcome hundreds of obstacles in its path, including rivers and barbed wire fences.

n one battle in March 1918, an French infantry company was attacked by a considerable German force and was almost surrounded and a triple barrage fire prevented retreat. The commanding officer had dispatched three runners, one after another, telling headquarters of their critical position but all of them were killed. He then sent Patsou, a French messenger dog, who ran through a withering barrage, covering 3,000 meters in a little over ten minutes, to deliver the message calling for immediate help.

Reinforcements were sent up in time to save 48 men, all that remained of Patsou's entire company.

An anonymous English Setter was with his French Algerian master in the trenches during the Battle of the Marne. One night an artillery shell burst nearby, burying the soldier under a mass of earth and debris. The dog immediately began digging for him and continued until his paws were bloody. When he was too weak to dig any more, he began to bark loudly until he attracted the attention of soldiers, who came and rescued the unconscious and seriously wounded man and placed him in a ambulance. The dog followed the ambulance to a field hospital, and was allowed to stay by his master's bedside until he fully recovered ...the two left the hospital together.

Voor foto's:
© http://community-2.webtv.net/Hahn-50thAP-K9/K9History2/
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[Yvonne]

Nog meer honden:
http://community-2.webtv.net/Hahn-50thAP-K9/K9History33/
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[Yvonne]

[Yvonne]

http://www.accueil.org/dossier_histoire/souvenir/diapo_animo/diapo_2.html

Op je gemak kijken, ook honden.
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[cossee]

Rin Tin Tin, een Duitse Herdershond, was de eerste hond die een filmster werd. Hij werd oorspronkelijk gebruikt als berichthond tijdens de Eerste Wereldoorlog. Toen Rin Tin Tin gewond raakte bij Saint Mihiel , ontfermde de Amerikaanse soldaat Lee Duncan zich over hem en nam hem mee naar Hollywood. Enige tijd later speelde Rin Tin Tin de ene rol na de andere in stomme films. In totaal speelde hij in zo’n 26 films en in één serie. Deze ster kreeg zelfs zijn eigen tegel met ster op Hollywood Boulevard.

[cossee]

Rin Tin Tin

De eerste Rin Tin Tin werd in Frankrijk geboren op 10 september 1918. Verweesd in de oorlog, werd hij geadopteerd door een Amerikaanse soldaat, Lee Duncan, die hem meenam naar de V.S., enkele kunstjes aanleerde en begin 1920 introduceerde in de filmwereld.

De originele Rin Tin Tin werd 16 jaar oud en ligt begraven in een dierenbegraafplaats in Parijs. Maar zijn kinderen, kleinkinderen en achterkleinkinderen speelden achtereenvolgens de rol van Rin Tin Tin in films en tv-series

[Richard]

Er is zelfs een vereniging van eigenaren van nakomelingen van Rin Tin Tin...

[cossee]

http://www.rintintin.com/

[Emiel]

Ein von den Engländern bei Langemarck (Flandern) abgefangener deutscher Meldehund
Aufnahme vom 13. Oktober 1917


Bron: www.stahlgewitter.com

[Linda C.]

Tip voor wie een reisje naar Londen plant:
"The Animals' War" is een tijdelijke tentoonstelling in The Imperial War Museum, nog tot 22 april 2007!

http://www.londontown.com/LondonEvents/TheAnimalsWar/f4e56
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Hang Tough!

[Emiel]

kwam ik tegen via google.

[den Korrigann]

Artikels, foto's van honden, paarden enz. op :
http://www.greatwardifferent.com/Great_War/Animals_at_War/Animals_at_War_00.htm

uit allerlei Franse, Duitse, Engelse...tijdschriften

[den Korrigann]

Frans postkaartje waarschijnlijk van kort na de oorlog

[Jamie]

Oei, blijkbaar bestond GAIA toen nog niet.
Voor de Nederlanders; Gaia is een belgische politieke partij die het opneemt voor de rechten van dieren.

Is het niet wreed dat de soldaat zich beschermd heeft tot een gifgasaanval en zijn trouwe viervoetert niet?

[Tandorini]

[Lingekopf]

[petit belge]

Op 18 december 1911 werden met toelating van het Departement van Oorlog, officiële testen gestart in het regiment karabiniers om het transport van de Maxim mitrailleur op het slagveld te bestuderen. De Minister van Oorlog vroeg testen uit te voeren met de ‘nationale hondenkar’ en met een door paarden getrokken wagen. De moed, kracht, slimheid en gehoorzaamheid van de honden triomfeerden over de kwaliteiten van hun concurrenten. In 1912 besliste de minister tot de aankoop van 104 Mi-Maxims model 1911 voor de Belgische infanterie. Vanaf 1913 zouden alle infanterieregimenten over één compagnie mitrailleurs met 6 stukken beschikken.

De honden waren Belgische waakhonden, ‘le mâtin’ geheten en een bastaardras van de ‘scheper’. Ze waren zeer volgzaam en trouw, zwaargebouwd en stevig op de poten. Ze wogen tussen de 50 à 60kg en waren 70 à 80cm hoog. Ze konden 250 tot 300kg trekken.

In het kamp van Beverlo werd een centrale kennel opgericht voor de dressuur en de kweek. De lieve ‘diertjes’ verorberden ongeveer twee broden en 300gr paardenvlees elk daags, eenmaal per week kregen zij wat gehakte groenten, vis, melk en beschuiten. Hun totale kost per dag bedroeg 0.50fr. De honden (tweespan) deden vaak tochten van 40km per dag en trokken daarbij 300kg!

Nederland volgde met aandacht de experimenten en hadden kapitein J. Meyer afgedeeld bij het regiment karabiniers. Deze laatste werd dan ook belast met het invoeren van de hondenkarren in het Nederlandse leger.


Later werden er ook ander rassen gebruikt.
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Aaaah! Les vaillants petits belges.

[Ivo]

Uit het vooroorlogse tijdschrift Ons Volk Ontwaakt:


http://users.skynet.be/ovo/OorlogFotos.html#LegeroefNamen

[mrs Stan]

Greetz, Margreet
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"Those boys were lions led by donkeys" quoted by our friend Mike about the victims of shot at dawn

[Paddy]

Uit het Staatsblad van 18 maart 1914:
Eene commisie belast met het aankopen van 228 trekhonden voor mitrailleurs zal,
vanaf den 28é maart, werkzaam zijn in de kaserne van het 1é regiment
karabiniers, Daillyplaats.
De personen die aan deze commisie verlangen honden aan te bieden worden verzocht
daarvan per brief kennis te geven aan den majoor-stafadjunct, voorzitter der
commissie van aankoop der honden, bij het 1é regiment karabiniers. Deze officier
zal hun den dag doen kennen waarop zij hunne honden zullen moeten aanbieden.
De voorwaarden te vervullen door de tot het vervoer der mitrailleurs bestemde
trekhonden zijn:
Geslacht: mannelijk; gestalte aan de schoft: 0.70 tot 0.75m; breede en diepe
borst; korte en wel gespierde lenden; rechte, sterke en wel gespierde benen;
pooten, met sterken zool, korte tenen in de vorm van kattepoot; dikken en
welgespierde nek; kort, niet te lichtkleurig haar; afgesneden staart; ouderdom:
18 tot 24 maanden.
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Greetings from a Little Gallant Belgian:-)
Patrick De Wolf
http://ablhistoryforum.be/

There is a very fine line between "hobby" and "mental illness".
"We're doomed, I tell ye!"

[patten]

mooi topic en prachtige foto's
kent er nog iemand de hond die in het oude museum stond te ieper
_________________
patrick vancoillie
laat ons de belgische gesneuvelde soldaten nooit vergeten wat er ook moge gebeuren...... diksmuide...merkem....nieuwpoort ..... de ijzer !!!

[malley]

kan iemand de foto van het hondenmemorial nog eens plaatsen want die van Yvonne krijg ik niet geopend.

[Tandorini]

Is het dit..?

[etappe gent]

diorama gemaakt met hond in de tentoonstelling dieren in wo1:

-Een pauseermoment tijdens de terugtocht in 1914. De opgeeiste hondenkar werd gebruikt om equipement te vervoeren.

[Paddy]

Vooral de laatste vind ik schattig





_________________
Greetings from a Little Gallant Belgian:-)
Patrick De Wolf
http://ablhistoryforum.be/

There is a very fine line between "hobby" and "mental illness".
"We're doomed, I tell ye!"

[rady]

[willems]

Er is een Engels boekje met als titel: Dogs at war.
Treu stories of canine courage under fire.
Geschreven door Blythe Hamer.
Published in 2001 bij Carlton Books Ltd.
ISBN1842222627.Achterin een lijst met publicaties en websites.

groet,
wim

[Paddy]

_________________
Greetings from a Little Gallant Belgian:-)
Patrick De Wolf
http://ablhistoryforum.be/

There is a very fine line between "hobby" and "mental illness".
"We're doomed, I tell ye!"

[Yvonne]

[Yvonne]

Nog meer honden:
http://community-2.webtv.net/Hahn-50thAP-K9/K9History/
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[Mart]

Speciale draagtas voor honden.

[malley]

er is trouwens tijdens de eerste wereldoorlog wel een dierenbescherming geweest deze is in 1919 weer opgeheven

[Yvonne]

[KHUKRI]

Ze zog iz still waiting for ze pilot !!! (Who waz totaly pizzed (onze again) when he left ze Offizers Mezz lazt night....)

[Nykle]

misschien ook wel een leuk linkje: http://www.gwpda.org/photos/greatwr2.htm#animals
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Eindelijk weer eens een week verlof, noem je dat geen reuzenbof?
Mijn kepi staat schuin op mijn kop, en toch heb ik geen borrel op.

[Luc Klaps]

Ik heb lange tijd getwijfeld om deze foto's met ongecensureerd commentaar te plaatsen maar ik wil het jullie toch niet onthouden.
Echter kan ik wel de naam van deze 'getuige' niet vrijgeven. Het is de zoon van een oud-strijder uit de eerste wereldoorlog.
Gelieve dit te respecteren.

Max Fox

Citaat: <<Mijn vader komt een paar keer op de foto met de mascottehond Max Fox van het 5e en 6e Chasseurs à Pied.
De hond had reeds alle frontstrepen sinds 1914 maar sneuvelde jammerlijk bij de slag bij Passendale in 1917.
Een Duitse granaat trof hem in volle borst.>>



Citaat: <<Mijn vader had het uniform gekregen van zijn majoor, maar zonder de 'galons' natuurlijk.
Een Vlaamse 'floche' soldaat had niet eens een mooi uniform.
Hoe zou hij dit kunnen hebben wanneer hij het merendeel van z'n tijd doorbracht in het slijk en de viezigheid?!>>



Citaat: <<Naar het verhaal van mijn vader zouden ze hem begraven hebben op het kerkhof van Alveringem (noot: geen gewijde grond want zo was dat in die tijd). Op zijn graf hadden de soldaten een grote houten plank geplant, in het wit geschilderd. Het had als opschrift: "Hier rust voor eeuwig onze mascotte Max Fox. Hij gaf zijn leven voor zijn vrienden zoals het een waardig hondensoldaat waardig is. We zullen hem nooit meer vergeten. Hij rustte in de hondenhemel in vrede!". Deze tekst was aangebracht met bloedrode verf (waarschijnlijk zal men dit wel niet bewaard hebben want het was tenslotte in de ogen van de nakomelingen, die geen oorlog gekend hadden, maar een hond).>>



Citaat: <<Mijn vader zei altijd: "Wij waren niet méér als onze Max, 'honden'. We werden behandeld als honden!
(zonder verder commentaar)>>

[Schnautzi]

Ooit eens tegengekomen

[Yvonne]

Mooie bijdrage Luc!
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[Yvonne]

Dogs of war: they'd be stuffed without them
YUKO NARUSHIMA
28/02/2009 1:06:36 AM

LOYALTY is a defining trait for Dobermans, but for a hungry dog engaged in war, food is a good enough lure to break ranks.

Australian troops were triumphant when during World War I, Roff the German messenger dog was tempted to cross the trenches outside Villers-Bretonneux by the prospect of food.

He became a trophy for the soldiers, who nicknamed him Digger, and is now stuffed and mounted in a new exhibition at the Australian War Memorial which focuses on the role animals play in war.

"Roff ran away the day his German commander was saying what a marvellous dog he was," exhibition curator Kate Dethridge said. . Other animals caught up in war included carrier pigeons, camels for transport and kangaroos smuggled out by servicemen as a reminder of home.

A black and white photograph in the exhibition shows an Australian soldier playing with a kangaroo in Cairo, against a backdrop of pyramids. "The boys were smuggling joeys out in backpacks which, in the First World War, were like big sacks. Once they were on board a ship and it had left Australia, there was nothing an officer could do."

Koalas were also smuggled.

The pets and mascots were evidence of humanity in the most awful of conditions, Ms Dethridge said.

However, not all animals were a source of comfort. Lice in Gallipoli and flies and mosquitoes in the Pacific were terrible pests. Soldiers wrote letters from France telling of rats found snuggled up against them for warmth as they slept.

Cockroaches were also a problem on the HMAS Westralia. Said stoker Jack Searle: "The ship was a haven for cockroaches. When opening our lockers dozens of the dirty devils scattered for cover … They crawled over sleeping sailors … and I once saw a cockroach drawn into the mouth of a heavy snorer who never knew what he had swallowed".

One of the more bizarre uses of animals were rat carcasses stuffed with gelignite during World War II. The British would drop the rats over industrial areas of Germany hoping those scooping coal into boilers would simply throw in the disguised explosives.
© http://www.canberratimes.com.au/news/national/national/general/dogs-of-war-theyd-be-stuffed-without-them/1446621.aspx
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[Tandorini]

HOW DOGS BECOME GOOD SOLDIERS

The training of intelligent animals like these is carried on in five different ways, for various uses.

1. As Ambulance Dogs. The animal seeks for wounded men lost on the battle-field; he searches in holes, ruins, and excavations, and hunts over wooded places or coverts, where the wounded man might lie unnoticed by his comrades or the stretcher-bearer. The dog is especially useful at this work in the night-time, when he can often by his scent discover fallen men who would otherwise be passed over, for at night-time ambulance-men often have to work in the dark, as lights would attract the enemy's fire. Having found a wounded man still alive, the dog brings his master (or the ambulance-man to whom he is attached) some article belonging to the sufferer. This object tells the master, "I have found someone - search!"
Usually the object brought is the fallen man’s képi (or nowadays his helmet), and the trainers teach the dog to find the man's headgear, but if this is missing some other object must be brought. It is a fatiguing operation for the animal, as he has to return with closed mouth. The ambulance-man who receives the article at once puts the animal on a leash, and is immediately led to his wounded comrade. The leash is about two yards long, so that the movements of the animal shall be hindered as little as possible.

If dogs were utilized in this service long during wartime, their value would be incalculable; and their use is all the greater when fighting takes place over an extended area. The situation of the wounded man overlooked or abandoned on the battle-field is a truly horrible one; he has to wait in the forlorn hope that he will be found, for the army has gone on, and the more victorious it is the farther it will push ahead. In the Franco-Prussian War of 1870-1 more than twelve thousand men were thus lost to the French alone, while in the Russo-Japanese War the Japanese lost over five thousand in this manner, showing that the methods then used for the exploration of the battle-fields were inadequate. In that war three dogs sent by a military dog society found twenty-three wounded men who had been abandoned after the battle of Cha-ho. In the Boer War the collie dogs taken out by the men, it is said, saved hundreds of wounded men who would never have been found by the ambulance-workers in the difficult country where fighting mostly took place.

2. As Trench Dogs or Sentinels. The sentry or trench dog is trained to stay in the trench itself or in a small "listening-post" made for him, either on the edge of the trench, outside it, or at a little distance away. There he remains on the qui vive, ready to signal the least suspicion of a noise or the presence of the enemy. In this work both his eyes and his scent help him. He is kept on the leash, and he gives the signal of danger by a slight growl, without barking, which would give the alarm. The greatest difficulty in the training of dogs for this work has been to rid them of the habit of barking, but this has been overcome with care and patience. The training of dogs for this class of work can be - and has been-carried to great lengths. A man crawling on patrol work takes a dog with him, also in a crouching position, on a leash. A little tug at the leash causes the dog to rise, to retire, or to change its direction, and a properly-trained animal will answer to the leash as satisfactorily as a horse does to the reins. Such a dog is of immense help at night, when he can be taken quite close to the enemy.

3. As Patrols or Scouts. The dog accompanies the human scout in his reconnaissance, and helps in finding advance posts or sentinels, and locating small groups of the enemy.

4. As Couriers or Messengers. The animal acts as a messenger, carrying written orders or information, and is used according to circumstances. He can carry messages between groups in the rear and fighting formations in the front - for example, between the artillery and the infantry, and vice versa; between two fighting forces, such as battalions, companies, or sections; between the headquarters and the various positions of the army; or between the main body and detached posts, such as patrols, scouts, etc. Taken along by a patrol or scouting party, he can be sent back to the main body with a message fixed to his collar. The note having been removed and read, a reply can be attached to his collar, and the dog sent back to the original body of men, even if they have changed their position, since he finds them again by his scent. A dog is not only much quicker in carrying these very special qualities, so that only a very few animals have been found capable of the work. It consists in sending him after a patrol en route with a message, or even in finding a lost patrol or scouting party and bringing it back to its base. It will readily be understood that an exceptional scent is required in a dog to do work of this sort.

In the two last-named classes of work dogs can pass swiftly backwards and forwards through brisk firing and run much less risk than a man.

DOGS ARE HEROES UNDER FIRE

There are several societies in Paris which choose suitable dogs in order to make soldiers of them. The "Central Society for the Development of the Breeds of Dogs" gave three thousand dogs to the French army last August. After they have been tested, an operation which takes about three weeks, they are sent to special stations in the rear of the armies to be trained, and five or six days are all that are necessary for the training of animals for the simpler kinds of work. For more difficult tasks the training is naturally a longer business. When dogs are to be trained as communication agents the in- struction may take several weeks. They are taught to go from one master to another, first by a call, then by a whistle, then simply at a mere gesture. Distances are gradually increased, obstacles are placed in the way, the animal's goal becomes invisible, and so on. Much patience is required in this kind of work; and it is found that the best results are obtained by kindness and giving rewards for good work accomplished. The animals are taught to recognize only two masters, and to obey them alone. Outsiders are not allowed to pet or feed them. When they understand that they have to obey only one or two men, they have to learn to follow one or both of them when marching in a column of infantry, to recognize them when in a group, and so on. They are taught to endure the sound of gun-firing or explosions quite close to them. Above all, they are strictly trained never to pick up articles on their journey and to refuse delicacies offered them by strangers.

Specially-trained dogs only are chosen for this work, and they are mostly sheep-dogs or collies or animals whose business it was in civil life to be guardians or watchers, and always on the alert. These are all the easier to train for the special work - somewhat of the same order - which they are set to do in war.

When the question of transport through the mountain snow had become a matter of urgent importance, the French authorities conceived the idea of using dog-drawn sleighs for carrying supplies. Some hundred "huskies' - a cross between the Eskimo dog and the wolf -and other trained dogs from Alaska, North-Western Canada, and Labrador were brought over by Lieutenant René Haas, a Frenchman who had spent fourteen years in Alaska. Mr. Warner Allen, the representative of the British Press with the French armies, describing the work of these dogs, says the snow in the neighbourhood of the Schlucht Pass was deep enough until almost the end of April for the dogs to render yeoman service. "They were able," he says, "to draw heavy loads over almost inaccessible country, and to supplement to a valuable extent the wheeled transport. But their utility has not ceased with the disappearance of the snow. They are now being harnessed to trucks on small two-foot-gauge light railways, which run everywhere behind the Front, and they are capable of drawing the heaviest load up the steepest gradient. Eleven dogs, with a couple of men, can haul a ton up some of the most precipitous slopes in the mountains, and I was assured that two teams of seven dogs each could do the work of five horses in this difficult country, with a very great economy of men."

This correspondent adds that the best of these imported breeds of dogs is the Alaskan, as "his courage never fails, ani he will work until he drops, though he is perhaps the weakest of them. They are all shaggy dogs, with prick ears and bushy tails, their colour ranging from black to white, between greys and browns. Their chest development, so necessary for hauling, is remarkable. They are mainly fed on rice, horse-flesh, and waste military biscuits, and this fare appears to suit them admirably, as they are always in splendid condition, and disease is practically unknown. The experiment of transporting these do as to France has shown that they can be of real service in mountainous country, and represent a real economy."
Dogs that are specially adapted or have been trained for hunting or sporting purposes are of little use in war, as they have acquired habits incompatible with the work now demanded of them, Certain breeds, such as the Great Dane, and others of limited intelligence, are of no value at all. Some of these have the habit of rushing forward at the slightest alarm, which is of more danger than advantage to the soldiers to whom they might belong.

DOGS AS LOYAL COMRADES - FELLOW-WORKERS

The "dog soldier," like his master on special missions, has to see and hear without being seen or heard. It is amusing, but nevertheless true, that the dogs of smugglers and poachers, as well as those of coastguardsmen, have been found to be most useful animals in the army. A well-trained dog, acting with a sentinel or scouting party may be the means of preserving numbers of lives by saving them from unpleasant surprises,

The use of dogs in warfare was, of course, not invented in the present war, though their utility had been systematized and given more scientific scope than was ever the case before. In no previous campaign have men understood the full use that could be made of these highly-intelligent creatures.

It was the Belgians who first turned their attention to the subject of employing dogs more extensively. Everybody who has visited Belgium knows the use that is made of dogs for traction purposes all over the country. Nearly all the peasants who bring agricultural or dairy produce to market employ dogs to draw their small carts, sometimes harnessing whole teams to heavy loads. The dog is also greatly used in Belgium for sport, and from the sporting dog to the police dog is but a step. The dog in war - as sentinel, courier, scout, or ambulance worker - followed, and was the idea of Professor Reul, of the Veterinary School of Cureghem, and two journalists named Van der Snick and Sodenkampf. In 1885-6 the 11 first dogs trained to some of these purposes were shown at a dog show at Ostend, and shortly afterwards societies were started at Brussels, Liége, Lierre, Ghent and other places, not merely for the training of dogs, but to improve the breeds. Lieutenant van der Putte, of the Belgian army, started the Société du Chien Sanitaire for the express purpose of training dogs for ambulance work and soon afterwards similar societies were organized in Paris and Berlin.

It was quite natural that the Belgians should also think of using these draught-dogs for small machine-guns, thus providing an inexpensive but efficient light artillery. The Germans wished to imitate them, but it is related that when they tried to buy dogs from the Belgians, as they had no indigenous animals suited to the purpose, the Belgians refused to sell. In other ways, however the Germans were at the beginning of the war well provided with dogs for various purposes, including the ambulance service.

Since then the use of dogs in the German army has assumed considerable proportions. The animals used are mostly of the German sheep-dog variety, and a register of these, numbering several thousands, is kept for mobilization purposes by the German Sheep-Dog Club. Other breeds used by the enemy are terriers, red-haired griffons, Doberman pinchers, Airedale terries, and a sort of bull-terrier known as a "Boxer." Dogs, it appears, have been used by the German army chiefly on the Eastern Front, where the fighting was of a more open description than on the Western Front. The German papers published appeals from the authorities asking dog owners to offer their pets for war purposes, and many thousands were obtained as a result.

[Fritz Kempf]

Vergeet niet de............Kanarie!!!


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"Kennscht mi noch?" ~~~ Who is the real "Fritz Kempf"?

Ypres Salient on Pictures
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[Yvonne]

Stubby the Military Dog

STUBBY

Brave Soldier Dog of The 102nd Infantry

The story of STUBBY actually starts with the beginning of the Great War in Europe. From 1914 to 1917 the French, Germans and others struggled with each other for control of France and Europe. In April of 1917 America finally entered the war and mobilized its National Guard forces.

The 1st Connecticut from the Hartford area and the 2nd Connecticut from the New Haven area were sent to Camp Yale in the vicinity of the Yale Bowl for encampment and training. It was during this phase that two important things occurred. The 1st and 2nd could not muster the required number of forces between them to form a fully manned regiment of 1000 + so they were combined. The 1st and 2nd with nothing in between became the 102nd Infantry and was made a part of the 26th (YANKEE) division of Massachusetts. It was also around this time that STUBBY wandered into the encampment and befriended the soldiers. In October 1917 when the unit shipped out for France, STUBBY, by this time the "UNOFFICIAL - OFFICIAL" mascot, was smuggled aboard the troop ship S.S. Minnesota in an overcoat and sailed into doggy legend.

Times were not good in France, the American Expeditionary Force was looked upon as second class soldiers, not to be trusted without French oversight and trench warfare combined with deadly gas took a toll on both the men and their spirits.

STUBBY did his part by providing morale-lifting visits up and down the line and occasional early warning about gas attacks or by waking a sleeping sentry to alert him to a German attack.

In April 1918 the Americans, and the 102nd Infantry, finally got their chance to prove their mettle when they participated in the raid on the German held town of Schieprey, depicted here in an original oil painting, by John D. Whiting, that hangs in the 102nd Regimental Museum in New Haven. As the Germans withdrew they threw hand grenades at the pursing allies. STUBBY got a little over enthusiastic and found himself on top of trench when a grenade went off and he was wounded in the foreleg.

This occurred in the vicinity of "Deadmans Curve" on the road outside Schieprey so named because to negotiate the curve vehicles had to slow down making them an easy target for German artillery.

After the recapture of Chateau Thierry the women of the town made him a chamois blanket embroidered with the flags of the allies. The blanket also held his wound stripe, three service chevrons and the numerous medals, the first of which was presented to him in Neufchateau, the home of Joan of Arc.

n the Argonne STUBBY ferreted out a German Spy in hiding and holding on to the seat of his pants kept the stunned German pinned until the soldiers arrived to complete the capture. STUBBY confiscated the Germans Iron Cross and wore it on the rear portion of his blanket for many years. The Iron Cross unfortunately has fallen victim to time and is no longer with STUBBY but many of his other decorations and souvenirs remain and are displayed with him today.

STUBBY was also gassed a few times and eventually ended up in a hospital when his master, Corporal J. Robert Conroy, was wounded. After doing hospital duty for awhile he and Conroy returned to the 102nd and spent the remainder of the war with that unit. STUBBY was smuggled back home in much the same way as he entered the War, although by this time he was so well known that you have to suspect that one or two general officers probably looked the other way as he went aboard ship to sail home and muster out with the rest of the regiment.

Oddly enough this not the end of the story, but rather in some ways the beginning. STUBBY became something of a celebrity.

He was made a lifetime member of the American legion and marched in every legion parade and attended every legion convention from the end of the war until his death. He was written about by practically every newspaper in the country at one time or another. He met three presidents of the United States Wilson, Harding and Coolidge and was a lifetime member of the Red Cross and YMCA. The Y offered him three bones a day and place to sleep for the rest of his life and he regularly hit the campaign trail, recruiting members for the American Red Cross and selling victory bonds.

In 1921 General Blackjack Pershing who was the supreme commander of American Forces during the War pinned STUBBY with a gold hero dog’s medal that was commissioned by the Humane Education Society the forerunner of our current Humane Society.

Stubby, Dog Hero of 17 Battles,
Will March in Legion Parade.
With the arrival of the District of Columbia delegation of the American Legion tomorrow will come the mascot of the A. E. F, Stubby, the dog hero of seventeen battles, who was decorated by General Pershing personally. Stubby served with the Twenty-Sixth Division and saw four offensives, St. Mihiel, Meuse-Argonne, Aisne- Marne and Champagne Marne. The medal that was pinned on the dog hero by General Pershing is made of gold and bears on its face the single name "Stubby", and is the gift of the Humane Education Society, sponsored by many notables including Mrs. Harding and General Pershing.
The Times-Picayune Sunday, October 15, 1922


Verder lezen en fotomateriaal:
http://www.ct.gov/mil/cwp/view.asp?a=1351&q=257892
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[den Korrigann]

[den Korrigann]

Hoe zou Joey het front doorstaan hebben ?

[patrick]

extract uit de onderstaande link. Joey hoefde gelukkig niet mee.

The RGLI took their mascot with them to Canterbury where they trained for the Front but when they left for France Joey returned to pulling a milkcart in Guernsey.

http://www.ciss1950.org.uk/guernsey_social_philately.html

[Karin]

Caesar, A Company, 4 Battalion, New Zealand Rifle Brigade





Caesar the bulldog, wearing his official collar, led the grand parade down Auckland's Queen Street before the Rifle Brigade left New Zealand for the war. He was a trained Red Cross dog and helped rescue wounded troops during the Battle of the Somme in 1916. Dogs were especially useful for helping stretcher-bearers find wounded soldiers in no man's land at night.

Caesar was killed in action. His collar is now held at the Auckland War Memorial Museum. Patricia Stroud wrote book about his life, Caesar the Anzac dog, which was illustrated by Bruce Potter.

[Mart]

[Mart]

[Percy Toplis]

Dieren in de Eerste en Tweede Wereldoorlog

OVT 8 maart 2009 uur 1 (7 min)

4 Komende week begint de boekenweek met als motto: Tjielp Tjielp - De literaire zoo. Een gesprek met uitgever/auteur Perry Pierik over het boek
‘Hellehonden en ander dierenleed 1914-1945, een ode aan het dier in oorlogstijd’ - Perry Pierik/Gerbrand Kip, uit. Aspekt, isbn 9789059118379

Audio: http://geschiedenis.vpro.nl/programmas/3299530/afleveringen/41158856/items/41635545/
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“I hope you live a life you are proud of. If you find that you are not, l hope you have the strength to start all over again.
- F. Scott Fitzgerald