patriotic pups

By Nancy Dewar Photographs from History Nebraska

Author Paul Kropp once said, “The joy of reading with our children doesn’t stop as they, as we, get older. It simply changes.” The book Major: A Soldier Dog is one that can be enjoyed by dog lovers of all ages; reading together or alone. Written by Trevor Jones, CEO of History Nebraska, the book tells the amazing story of war dogs from the perspective of Major, a real-life World War II soldier dog. Over 17,000 American dogs served overseas in the US military during World War II assisting our troops as guards, scouts, mine detectors and messengers. New York socialite Arlene Stern Erlanger, a premier breeder of Poodles, was key in bringing dogs into service. Knowing that other countries had employed them in their militaries for years, in early 1942 she made the following statement to a writer at the New York Sun, “The dog must play a game in this thing. Other countries have used dogs in their armies for years. Just think what dogs can do guarding forts, munition plants and other such places.”

A nation-wide program known as Dogs for Defense was initiated to obtain dogs for war service, with their training ultimately being turned over to the Armed Services. Who were these dogs? They were beloved members of thoucharge certificate from the U.S. Army.

sands of American families who patriotically surrendered their dogs to support the war effort. The need for service dogs got out through a robust PR campaign spearheaded by Ms. Erlanger. News reels featured headlines about Dogs for Defense, the Purina Company did ad campaigns and Hollywood icons became involved.

Fort Robinson, located in Crawford, Nebraska Robinson with no basic training, as they were

was the largest of the four dog training facilities and still has many training artifacts in their museum. I spoke to Trevor Jones recently to learn more about the historic training camp and his impetus to write this book. He explained, “Knowing all that was done here with the dogs, I kept thinking it would be cool to tell this story to kids and even cooler to tell it from the perspective of a dog. It could be a way to get the idea of patriotism and sacrifice through to children. Would you give up your dog to help your country? It’s a way to illustrate sacrificing something that matters for something else that matters."

Major, the real dog in this wonderful book, was a belonged to the Moore family. Sid Moore was five when they gave Major up. About twenty years ago Sid sent a letter to the Fort Robinson Historical Society reflecting on his dog’s service. After relentless searching, Trevor eventually connected with Sid. Now 82, Sid recounted relinquishing Major at the train station and told Trevor that this moment from his childhood still stands out with crystal clarity. Major served from 1943 to 1945. He returned stateside and home to the joyful Moore’s complete with an Honorable DisWhen dogs “enlisted,” they started with a basic training course. “If they flunked, they were sent home.” Basic training included learning verbal and non-verbal field commands such as “drop flat” and “shell fire.” They then proceeded to advanced training for their designated area of specialty. In addition to canine recruitment, the Armed Services also had to recruit people to train the dogs. “When soldiers were drafted and went to the induction center, they were asked if they had any experience with dogs. If they happened to say, ‘Yeah, I had a hunting dog,’ the next thing you know is they’re on their way to Fort

Border Collie from Wahpeton, North Dakota who desperate,” Trevor said with a chuckle.

Nearly all breeds were accepted initially. Eventually it was pared down to breeds with traits that most aptly served the military’s needs. “This was all new. Experience taught them that

Great Danes ate too much. Dalmations stood out too much in the field. It was a learning process,” Trevor explained. Dogs were assigned one specific handler, and the duo worked together throughout their service. The lucky ones that came home at the end of the war had six weeks of de-training; they needed to learn how to be pets again. It’s inspiring that our Armed Services did not view these amazing canines as gifts to the government, but rather as loans. They did everything in their power to return them to their original families. If families couldn’t be located, the dogs stayed with their serviceman.

A delve into Major: A Service Dog is an inspiring way to learn more about these amazing defense dogs. You can also hear from Trevor and Sid directly via their 2020 interview on NPR. This book is a treasure. And of course, the courageous defense dogs will always be national treasures. They served with dignity and returned home to a hero’s welcome.

(Note: Major: A Service Dog is available from Amazon & you can hear the NPR interview via this link: www.pri.org/file/2020-09-02/ world-war-ii-soldier-dog.)