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FIDO HAS GOJS E TO WARBy EDWARD CULLOM(In Pathfinder)Like many other innovations in modern warfare, the use of trained dogs seems to havestarted with the Germans. In the first World War both the Germans and the French usedthem extensively. A start was made to trainthem in the United States, but the only one towork with American troops on the field were borrowed.When the Germans started preparing for the present war, they also began trainingdog-s for it, and the number they had ready has been estimated from 100,000 to 200,000.They were also reported to have contributed 50,000 to the Japanese, after Pearl Harbor,and those dogs are believed to be largely responsible for the astonishing success of the sponsible for some successes of the Japanese in jungle fighting against the British andDutch. Neither Americans nor British had any dogs in training, but the Russians hadthem ready when needed—100,000 of them.Along the Atlantic coast (where German saboteurs have slipped ashore) there gd patrols every night consisting of two Coast Guardsmen and one German shepherd dog. The dog, in the dark, can detect the presence of a stranger 200 yards away, and with a low growl and rising hackles he warns his handlers and shows them where to find the intruder. One man and one dog are said to be equivalent to seven men without a dog in this shore duty. The German shepherd appears to be favored for this work, and there are said to be 5,000 of them now helping to guard the vital shore line of Hawaii.The Doberman fanciers claim he has the record as the outstanding dog for war use.But admirers of the Airdale point out thatthe Germans call this dog Kriegshund—wrar dog—because of his war record. The truth is that the many services the K-9 Corps is called upon to render, demand many kinds of special talents. It takes little fellows to get around on battlefields without being too conspicuous; terriers especially have been found useful forfuard duty inside warehouses and factories.paniels and Labradors are needed for their swimming ability, and there is also a demandfor keen-scented hunting dogs.Besides the dogs mentioned, there are also at the five official training stations: Boxers,retrievers, elkhounds, Kerry blues, collies,schnauzers, French poodles (they are especially clever, even clownish) and black-and-white Dalmatians, commonly palled coach dogs, which must serve behind the lines because of being too easily seen. In fact, there seems to be a place for about every breed except thedachshund, and the Mexican hairless. But thephysical qualifications are more rigid. An acceptable dog must be between one and five years old and stand 18 inches high or more atthe shoulder.Where do the dogs in the K-9 Command I come from? From the homes of citizens, for the most part. The Army does not go out and buy up the dogs it needs, as in the case of horses and mules. These service dogs are treated much more like the soldiers with whom they work so closely. They are formally enlisted, and when they come back from the wars they will be sent back to the homes from which they came.The Army’s procurement aeencv for doirs
Newspaper Details
Belton Journal and Bell County Democrat
Belton, Texas, US
Thu, Sep 16, 1943
Page 13
Full Page
Clipped by
Nancy L.
NM, USA 21 Jan 2020
Other Publications Near Belton, Texas
Belton Journal and Bell County Democrat
Belton Journal
