#Middlebury #MilitaryDogs
DEAR PAW’S CORNER: During Memorial Day week, I wanted to bring your readers’ attention to the service and sacrifice of the thousands of dogs who went to war with their soldiers. Many did not come home, because they either died during operations or were left behind. Please take a few minutes this week to remember these four-footed warriors – Jim W., Chattanooga
DEAR JIM: Request received! Thank you for calling attention to the sacrifices of military working dogs. The U.S. armed forces has had a military dog program since World War II. These canine warriors help detect mines and improvised explosive devices (IEDs), provide security on bases and much more. Between 2001 and 2013, over 2,600 “war dogs were deployed to Afghanistan and Iraq. In that time, at least 92 are known to have died, the majority in combat.
However, in all this time, there was no military-wide tracking system of its injured war dogs. How often were they injured or killed? What were their injuries like? How did they fare after their service? Data that would be helpful in treating other injured war dogs was being lost.
In January, funding was passed for a Military Working Dogs Trauma Registry (for details, go to www.avma.org and search for “working dogs, combat injuries”). Veterinarians will be able to consult the registry to learn more about war dog combat injuries and better ways to treat them. Injured war dogs will have a better chance of survival. Retired dogs will be able to get more effective treatment for their wounds.
This legislation is a huge, active step toward truly honoring the sacrifices of military working dogs and can help even more of them come home.
Send your questions, tips or comments to ask@pawscorner.com.
© 2021 King Features Synd., Inc.
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