February 27, 2020
Volume 50 - No. 09
By Friedrich Gomez
Mention the word “hero” out loud and immediately most people think only of human beings. Rarely do the four-footed variety, namely dogs, ever come to mind. Sadly, dogs still remain, to this day, relatively unknown and unheralded, despite their ultimate sacrifice of laying down their lives to protect their respective owners. And even in service and defense of our country, they have paid the ultimate price of losing their precious lives so that we may live free. The Paper - 760.747.7119
website:www.thecommunitypaper.com
email: thepaper@cox.net
There are just too many examples and too many ways in which dogs have distinguished themselves as true heroes. What you are about to read is just one, small part of their story. Just a cursory glance at their magnificent legacy of self-sacrifice and eventual death to protect human beings. And for all of this, they only ask to be hugged, accepted, and loved. This true-life story chronicles these heroic dogs. Who were abandoned and forgotten.
During the Vietnam War, approximately 5,000 U. S. war dogs served their country in various combat roles, along with about 10,000 dog handlers. (Note: The U. S. Army did not maintain accurate records of these war dogs prior to 1968, so numbers remain somewhat sketchy.) All four branches of the military used these dogs in Vietnam. The breakdown of dog handlers in Vietnam by military branch, in transmission order, were: Army = 65%, Air Force = 26%, Marines =
Heroic Dogs See Page 2
7%, Navy = 2%.
Scout dogs and their handlers were mainly trained at Ft. Benning, Georgia, the locale of their prestigious “Hell Paws” program, which boasts: “Through these doors pass the best-cared-for dogs in the world!” (Some, however, were trained “In-Country” in areas where they served.)
How truly valuable were these dogs in their service to our country? The most powerful reply is in the calculation of human beings