K9 Veterans Day

National K9 Veterans Day, March 13, is a day set aside to honor and commemorate the service and sacrifices of American military and working dogs throughout history.  March 13th is the significant date to honor these working dogs, as it was on March 13, 1942, that the Army began training for its new War Dog Program, also known as the “K-9 Corps,” marking the first time that dogs were officially a part of the U.S. Armed Forces, although dogs have had a presence in wartime for decades prior.  

During WWI, the US military began to utilize dogs for message delivery between troops. The need for military dogs became so great that American families began to donate their dogs to the war effort. It has been estimated that approximately 1,000,000 dogs were killed in action during the war. During the war, dogs were reported to have performed acts of bravery and heroism during combat. One such dog was Sergeant Stubby.

Sergeant Stubby was purported to be both the most decorated war dog of WWI, and the only dog to be nominated and promoted to the rank of sergeant through combat. The feat that supposedly earned Stubby the rank of sergeant occurred when he captured a German spy and held him by the seat of his pants until US soldiers arrived. Although there is no official documentary evidence for this claim, Stubby’s display at the Smithsonian Institution promotes the story as true.

This history would be perfectly appropriate to read to your dogs as they sleep the day away on the couch on Saturday, March 13th like the perfect creatures that they are, job or no job.  We thank these heroes and honor them.