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NORFOLK, Va. -- Bring the dolphins home! That's the message of one group of protesters who are mad at Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld. Members of PETA -- People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals -- don't want dolphins used in the war effort. The animals are trained by the Navy to detect underwater mines. The Norfolk, Va., based activists have faxed and e-mailed a letter to Rumsfeld with their objections. PETA also doesn't like the idea of GIs using chickens and pigeons to detect a chemical attack. PETA argues that wars are human endeavors and that the animals "never enlisted."

Just confirmed at the press conference, truly a 21st Century War..

U.S. enlists dolphins to aid war effort in Iraq UMM QASR, Iraq, March 25 (Reuters) - Forget precision bombs, unmanned spy-planes and high-tech weaponry, the U.S. army is about to unveil its most unlikely mine detector -- all the way from Florida, the Atlantic Bottle-Nosed Dolphin. At the southern Iraqi port of Umm Qasr, secured by U.S and British forces after days of fighting, soldiers made last-minute preparations on Tuesday for the imminent arrival of a team of specially trained dolphins to help divers ensure the coastline is free of danger before humanitarian aid shipments can dock. U.S. Navy Captain...

This is K-Dog, the coalition forces' most surprising weapon against Iraq. With a camera strapped to his fin, the bottle-nose dolphin is one of about 100 dolphins and sea lions helping to clear shipping lanes in the Gulf to ensure a safe passage for vessels, including those which will provide humanitarian relief. K-Dog and his handler Sgt Andrew Garrett are part of a multinational team, CTU-55.4.3, consisting of Naval Special Clearance Team One, Britain's Fleet Diving Unit Three, Australia's Clearance Dive Team, and two Explosive Ordnance Disposal units. A Pentagon spokesman said: "The team works in both deep and shallow...

War's underwater heroes 26mar03 Underwater heroes: Dolphins – trained to seek out mines – are working in the southern Iraq port city of Umm Qasr to protect coalition ships. THEY are the underwater heroes of the modern war. Dolphins – trained to seek out mines – are working in the southern Iraq port city of Umm Qasr to protect coalition ships. Heading home: Sgt Justin Roberts escorts K-Dog, a bottle-nose dolphin belonging to Commander Task Unit, back to the well deck and holding areas aboard the USS Gunston Hall operating in the Gulf. Dolphins use their biological sonar to search...

MARCH 25--When TSG learned today (via a Drudge Report link) that coalition forces in Iraq had embedded sea life in the drive to oust Saddam Hussein, we wondered how long it would take People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals to leap to the defense of mine-sweeping dolphins and sea lions. It took PETA about three minutes to provide us with a statement attacking the military practice of using marine mammals to look for and mark mines that now dot shipping lanes in the Gulf. Along with troops and military equipment, humanitarian aid is also passing through that channel. Here's...

In this handout photo from the U.S. Navy (news - web sites), Sergeant Andrew Garrett watches K-Dog, a bottle nose dolphin attached to Commander Task Unit 55.4.3 leaps out of the water while training near the USS Gunston Hall in the Persian Gulf on March 18, 2003. Commander Task Unit 55.4.3 is a multinational team from the United States, Great Britain and Australia conducting deep/shallow water mine clearing operations to clear shipping lanes for humanitarian relief and are currently conducting missions in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom. (AP Photo/ U.S. Navy, Brien Aho, HO) CAMP AS SALIYAH, Qatar -...

PARIS (AFP) - The US military's use of trained dolphins to help demine southern Iraqi waters ran into crossfire on Tuesday from animal-rights groups and biologists, who branded the scheme both unethical and unreliable. "We are strongly opposed to keeping these mammals in captivity, and we're not happy with this exploitation," Cathy Williamson of the Whale and Dolphin Conservation Society, a British-based agency, told AFP. "The animals could get hurt, and that's not justified," Williamson said. Stephanie Boyles, a wildlife biologist at the US campaign group PETA (People for the Ethical Treaty of Animals), slammed the US military for...

(CNSNews.com) - Animal rights activists are blasting the U.S. Navy for its use of mine-detecting dolphins in the war with Iraq because, according to the activists, the marine mammals "have not volunteered" to be part of the war. Stephanie Boyles, a wildlife biologist with People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA), said the use of dolphins to sweep for mines in Iraq is "just ridiculous." "These are animals that, number one, have not volunteered to take part in this whatsoever. Number two, they are being put in harm's way...when they don't even know they are in harm's way," Boyles...

PETA, People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals, has strongly condemned the U.S. military's use of dolphins and sea lions in the Iraq war to help clear underwater mines. Sgt. Andrew Garrett trains bottlenose dolphin 'K-Dog' armed with camera in Arabian Gulf About 100 dolphins and sea lions are helping U.S. troops clear shipping lanes in the Persian Gulf to ensure safe passage for vessels, including those that will provide humanitarian relief, reports the London Evening Standard.

THE US Marines have suffered an embarrassment with reports last night that one of their most prized investigators may have defected. Takoma, the Atlantic bottle-nosed dolphin, had been in Iraq for 48 hours when he went missing on his first operation to snoop out mines. His handler, Petty Officer Taylor Whitaker, had proudly showed off Takoma’s skills and told how the 22-year-old dolphin was among the most pampered creatures in the American military. Takoma and his fellow mine hunters have a special diet, regular medical checks and their own sleeping quarters, which is more than can be said for the...

US Navy's 'Flipper' goes AWOL Staff Sgt. Justin Roberts escorts K-Dog, a Bottle Nose Dolphin belonging to Commander Task Unit. In Bahrain, sea lions are being used to detect unauthorized swimmers near U.S. Navy ships. A sea lion moves through the water with a training device during a harbor-patrol exercise. Photo Credits: Courtesy U.S. Navy March 31, 2003 AUSTRALIAN military divers yesterday questioned the effectiveness of the US Navy's mine-clearing dolphins, revealing one had disappeared for two days. The polite way to express their scepticism about the mine-clearing skills of the dolphins is to question their reliability and cost-efficiency, but...