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be 5,000 of them now helping to guard the vital shore line of Hawaii.In London, after the German bombs had left smoking ruins of homes, little terriers would plunge into the debris and never give up thesearch until the last victim had been found. In the Libyan desert after a day’s bloody battle had left the terrain strewn with dead and wounded, these little four-legged workers would come into the field wearing glowing Red Cross blankets and bringing packs of medical supplies—first aid—for sufferers. At other times they act as messengers, carrying dispatches, or take rolls of wire on their backs for stringing communication lines.Out in Montana, at Camp Rimini, sledge dogs are being trained. Experienced dog teamsters are giving lessons in transportation over snow to both drivers and their teams—mala-mutes, huskies and St, Bernards. Such teams are now in Alaska hauling food and equipment to soldiers who can be reached by no other form of transportation.Dogs guard ports, forts, motor bases, quartermaster depots, war plants and parked cars. They scout off leash; they trail spies or saboteurs; they attack fiercely when so or-ld they guard prisoners while thefcaptors seeks aid or a conveyance. They swim streams; they detect the camouflaged enemy; they are not afraid of gunshots and explosions; and they never cower or run for ^cover. They run low to the ground and make a difficult target, especially the smaller ones, and they never accept food from anybody but their masters.There are only a few thousands of these caiiine troopers working with the American forces today, but the goal has been set at 125,000 if needed; they are coming in satisfactorily. They are being trained at Army posts in Virginia, Nebraska, Montana, California and Hawaii. When they “graduate” they are enrolled in the K-9 Command.What sort of dogs are used? Well, about every kind except mongrels. To be trained, they need to be pure-bred or cross-breds so as to have definite characteristics. Only big ones like Great Danes, German shepherds or • English bulls are good for patrol. They are»ir man if Jhey catch in training at Newhim. T he Marine Corps in training River, N. C., favor for exclusive use the lanky sPoberman Pinschers, of which they have 130.from which they came.The Army’s procurement agency for dogs is a civilian organization named Dogs for Defense, created largely through the efforts of Mrs. Milton Erlanger, a native New Yorker. She tried vainly to set up a dog service in the Signal Corp^, in the last war, to rival and complement the use of carrier pigeons. In this war she started earlier, got the support of Quartermaster General Edmund B. Gregory, and with another dog fancier, H. I. Caesar, organized Dogs for Defense, through which patriotic citizens donate the services of their dogs to the Army. The popular response hasbeen generous, and nine out of 10 dogs offered have been found acceptable, in spite of the rather rigid requirements that they must be strong, healthy, fearless and not gun-shy.Dogs once accepted in the K-9 Command gel the best care. They have passed a physical examination, and now they are innocu-lated. Each is issued a collar and leash and an “identification card,” which consists of tattoo marks on the left e$r. Every day the dog is thoroughly groomed—dog-handlers, like cavalrymen, must take ’care of their charges before themselves—and his kennel is kept clean. His feeding is carefully • supervised (yes, a bone is part of his ration), and more than 200 veterinarians watch over the health of this particular command. Few dogs in civilian life get such expert attention.The recruits are given four weeks of basic training. They are taught to heel, sit, lie down, stay in position, drop, scale a wall. They are car-broken, conditioned to firing, and taught not to fight each other—to practically ignore the presence of other dogs, which is a real triumph over dog nature. After the basic, there comes a four-weeks’ course of special training in which each dog is taught his own particular job. Some take up sentry duty, or watching; some go in for trial and attack, others to carry messages or pigeonsor packs, lay wire, and scout over difficult terrian. A first-aid dog can fipd a wounded soldier in the dark. An airplane-spotter can bark a warning of an approaching plane before his trainer hears a sound. In jungle fighting the dog sees, hears and smells keenly in detecting snipers, machinegun nests, camouflaged enemies.Dogs, the few that could be furnished in(Continued top next column)inThreLexiihavefirs.unde lulu ' RabaBougnearThfightprorrginetdowri of niin, 1luck.fivetryina ni i -remafightIniee, aers (rectiLexii tion Lieu :;urnlt; gunshe ishotiamj20ulf shot a th toge expe: few gresi painimgtlt;lost whossheandTheffelt;manI Cora Zerothe...»■MUM
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
