Dogs in History

dorothystewart.net Newfoundland Mi'kmaq, family history, Coronation Street, etc. Dogshttp://dorothystewart.net in War Date : September 10, 2014 - by Jim Stewart, originally published on the STDOA website Sergeant Gander The WWII story of Sergeant Gander is one of courage, companionship, and sacrifice. Gander was posthumously awarded the Dickin Medal in 2000. Sgt. Gander, a Newfoundland dog, and other animals who served in Canada's military are recognized on the Veterans Affairs Canada. A grenade killed Sgt. Gander. He grabbed it and ran, taking it away from his men. It took his life when it exploded, but his action saved many. The book Sergeant Gander: A Canadian Hero, by St. Thomas' own Robyn Walker, is called "a fascinating account of the Royal Rifles of Canada's canine mascot, and his devotion to duty during the Battle of Hong Kong in the Second World War." Intended for children, it is very informative for anyone interested in Newfoundland dogs, Newfoundland or Canada's role in WWII. The Amazon link is here. 1 / 21 dorothystewart.net Newfoundland Mi'kmaq, family history, Coronation Street, etc. Dickenhttp://dorothystewart.net Medal The Dickin Medal, at left, has been awarded to heroic animals by the UK's People's Dispensary for Sick Animals (PDSA) since 1914. It has an amazing history and the list of recipients includes dogs, pigeons, cats, and horses. A WWII British recipient of the award was Judy, shown at right wearing her Dickin Medal, the only dog to ever officially be listed as a Prisoner of War in a Japanese prison camp. 2 / 21 dorothystewart.net Newfoundland Mi'kmaq, family history, Coronation Street, etc. http://dorothystewart.net 3 / 21 dorothystewart.net Newfoundland Mi'kmaq, family history, Coronation Street, etc. http://dorothystewart.netDamien Lewis wrote about her and her partner Frank Williams in Judy: A dog in a million. Here 4 / 21 dorothystewart.net Newfoundland Mi'kmaq, family history, Coronation Street, etc. http://dorothystewart.netis the Amazon link. Mr. Williams and his wife and children settled in British Columbia in the 1950s. His family's website here tells about his life and Judy's, and their plan to make their story into a movie. (For bios, click on "A Tribute..." link at the bottom of the page.) Flanders Fields' Bonfire, WWI Another faithful four legged friend who served in war was the horse Bonfire. Bonfire is shown here with John McCrae, born in Guelph, Ontario, who served as a field surgeon with the Canadian Army Medical Corps during World War I. The misery the two of them saw is hard to imagine. McCrae, who would become a Lieutenant Colonel, never returned to Canada, having passed away in 1918 from pneumonia and was buried in France with full military honours. His flag-draped coffin was borne on a gun carriage and his mourners, who included Sir Arthur Currie and many of McCrae's friends and staff, were preceded by Bonfire, with McCrae's boots reversed in the stirrups. John McCrae wrote In Flanders Fields. Eli and Colton Rusk, Afghanistan 5 / 21 dorothystewart.net Newfoundland Mi'kmaq, family history, Coronation Street, etc. http://dorothystewart.net "Fallen Marine's parents adopt son's bomb dog" read the headlines Feb. 2, 2011. In only the 2nd time that a US military dog has been adopted by the family of a handler killed in action, Eli's leash was handed to Darrell Rusk, his wife and two sons who crouched down to hug and pet Eli, who lifted his paw. Because Eli was still considered operational, the adoption was approved with special permission of the Sec. of the Navy. Eli will join the other dogs on the Rusk ranch in Texas. Eli was assigned to Rusk in May, 2010. On duty in Afghanistan, the two quickly grew inseparable. Military dogs, are supposed to sleep in kennels when deployed, but Rusk broke the rules and let Eli curl up with him on his cot. He shared his meals with him. "What's mine is his" wrote Rusk. On the day Rusk was killed by a sniper, Eli was the first to reach his body. So loyal, he snapped at other Marines who rushed to his fallen handler. They had already found two roadside bombs that day, and had stopped when a vehicle had run over a third. Rusk was shot after the soldiers stopped to secure the area. Pfc. Colton Rusk was 20 years old. 6 / 21 dorothystewart.net Newfoundland Mi'kmaq, family history, Coronation Street, etc. http://dorothystewart.net 7 / 21 dorothystewart.net Newfoundland Mi'kmaq, family history, Coronation Street, etc. http://dorothystewart.net 11 of the Bravest Dogs in History These are great. Mother Nature Network (MNN) put together a list of 11 of the bravest dogs in history. One of them, in the photo on the left, is Balto. He was the lead husky in the dog team that ran the final leg of a run across Alaska to Nome in 1925. The teams were bringing serum to combat a diphtheria epidemic in the town. The run made by these dogs and men is now commemorated in the annual Iditarod race. Smoky - "Four pounds of courage" 8 / 21 dorothystewart.net Newfoundland Mi'kmaq, family history, Coronation Street, etc. http://dorothystewart.net Smoky was found by an American soldier in an abandoned foxhole in the New Guinea jungle in 1944. She was sold to Corporal Bill Wynne for two Australian pounds so her owner could return to his poker game. For the next two years Smoky traveled with Wynne, even on combat flights over the Pacific. Wynne was with the 26th Photo Recon Squadron and went everywhere, jungle and air, and was credited with being on twelve missions. Smoky was on all of them. Wynne credited Smoky with saving his life by warning him of incoming shells on a transport ship, calling her an "angel from a foxhole," Smoky guided Wynne to duck the fire that hit the eight men standing next to them. In down time, Smoky learned numerous tricks, which she performed for the entertainment of the other troops with Special Services and in hospitals from Australia to Korea, and between her and Wynne, Smoky developed a repertoire beyond that of any dog of her day. In 1944 Yank Down Under magazine named Smoky the "Champion Mascot in the Southwest Pacific Area." Smoky would later, after the war, perform in 42 live-television shows without repeating a trick. 9 / 21 dorothystewart.net Newfoundland Mi'kmaq, family history, Coronation Street, etc. http://dorothystewart.net From Bill Wynne's website he tells us that, having had six lessons in obedience training in Cleveland in 1942, his experience when he obtained the four pound Yorkie in New Guinea was indeed limited. But soon Smoky was 'playing dead' and weaving between Bill's legs as he walked along. She learned to walk on a drum and peddle a scooter made from an orange crate. And she was soon walking on a tight wire blindfolded. 10 / 21 dorothystewart.net Newfoundland Mi'kmaq, family history, Coronation Street, etc. http://dorothystewart.net Smoky's tricks enabled her to become a hero in her own right by helping engineers to build an airbase which required a telegraph wire to be run through 70 feet of pipe which had shifted in some places. It was quite the moment when she emerged from the other end of the pipe with the string that had the wire attached. Her "trick" saved three days work and men being exposed on the runway in a very dangerous situation. For most people, her ultimate trick was spelling her name out of letters by actual recognition, no matter how they were placed. Smoky and Bill performed for their buddies and at Army and Navy Hospitals. Many of these tricks are used today in agility trials. They were in show business for 10 years after the war doing the tricks Smoky learned overseas, all set to music. And Bill worked in Hollywood for a short time after the war, training and handling dogs in major studios. According to Wikipedia, Animal Planet determined that Smoky was the first therapy dog of record. Her service in this arena began in July 1944 at the 233rd Station Hospital, in New Guinea, where she accompanied nurses to see the incoming battlefield casualties from the Biak Island invasion. Smoky was already a celebrity of sorts, as her photograph was in Yank Down Under magazine at the same time, which made it easy to get permission. Dr. Charles Mayo, of the famed Mayo Clinic, was the commanding officer who allowed Smoky to go on rounds and also permitted her to sleep with Wynne in his hospital bed for five nights. Smoky’s work as a therapy dog continued for 12 years, during and after World War II. After the war Wynne brought Smoky back to Cleveland to live with his family. In Cleveland, Wynne and Smoky were featured in a page one story with pictures, and Smoky soon become a national sensation. Over the next 10 years Smoky and Wynne traveled to Hollywood and all over the world to perform demonstrations of her remarkable skills. She appeared with Wynne on some of the earliest TV shows in the Cleveland area, including a show of their own called Castles in the Air on Cleveland's WKYC Channel 3. They were especially popular as entertainers at the veterans' hospitals. According to Wynne, "after the War, Smoky entertained millions during the late 40s and early 50s." 11 / 21 dorothystewart.net Newfoundland Mi'kmaq, family history, Coronation Street, etc. http://dorothystewart.net In 1957, at age 14, Smoky passed away unexpectedly.

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