Posted on 05/05/2011 4:38:33 PM PDT by traumer
Dogs have been fighting alongside U.S. soldiers for more than 100 years, seeing combat in the Civil War and World War I. But their service was informal; only in 1942 were canines officially inducted into the U.S. Army. Today, they're a central part of U.S. efforts in Iraq and Afghanistan -- as of early 2010 the U.S. Army had 2,800 active-duty dogs deployed (the largest canine contingent in the world). And these numbers will continue to grow as these dogs become an ever-more-vital military asset.
So it should come as no surprise that among the 79 commandos involved in Operation Neptune Spear that resulted in Osama bin Laden's killing, there was one dog -- the elite of the four-legged variety. And though the dog in question remains an enigma -- another mysterious detail of the still-unfolding narrative of that historic mission -- there should be little reason to speculate about why there was a dog involved: Man's best friend is a pretty fearsome warrior.
Above, a U.S. soldier with the 10th Special Forces Group and his dog leap off the ramp of a CH-47 Chinook helicopter during water training over the Gulf of Mexico as part of exercise Emerald Warrior on March 1.
(Excerpt) Read more at foreignpolicy.com ...
The photographs are awesome at the link. Thanks!
Rusk family reunited with son’s military dog
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EB0MqNOxtm0&feature=player_embedded
Scope this link, with puppers.
My experience with German Shepards is they are better in a dangerous situation than a cop OR a Gun.
Fantastic pics!
Now its 79 commandos?
Every number I hear is different.
Just try and get a cat to do this!!
ping
Indeed! Isn’t that a great shot? My sons saw that one too, and we all loved it. (We’ve got a black lab named Bella.)
Doggie is sayin’ to hisself, “What kind of sh*t do these kids listen to on their Bonefones these days, anyhow?”
Belgian Malinois’ are very similar to German Shepherds in both looks and abilities.
Belgian Malinois’ are very similar to German Shepherds in both looks and abilities.
Thanks. . .Of all the discriptions; these photos ‘explain’ location, better than any.
what a beautiful dog. What I love about them is their intelligence and dedication.
sometimes when you ride the train in Houston the LEO’s check the trains with the big Black Belgium Shepards. It is interesting how they give everyone getting off the once over.
Geromino!
For some reason, I’ll have to go back and try to watch it later because my sceen got all blurry and fuzzy after it started playing and I couldn’t see much. Funny, it happened to everything I tried to look at while it was playing, too.
But then again, I’m sure that will happen again if try replaying it.
Thanks for the link.
On the average, German Shepherds are slightly larger than Belgian Malinois. On the other hand, Belgian Malinois have fewer health issues than GSDs.
If that’s a war dog, why does he have a muzzle on? I mean, I’d think they would want him to be able to bite.
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