My regulars know that I am a dog person and I write about them as often as I can. I have written about our canine vets many times….and this is a story from World War 2 and our canine heroes of the effort against the Nazis.

Did you know that there were parachuting dogs in that war?

No?

Then read on……

On the eve of the Normandy invasion, three planes carrying the members of Britain’s 13th Battalion took off for France. In addition to the 60 men aboard, each plane carried one dog. The story of how these paratrooping canines got there — and what happened next — is nothing short of remarkable.

Lazar Backovic has penned a fascinating article for Spiegel Online chronicling the brief but astounding story of Britain’s parachuting dogs, or “paradogs.” Much of the information in the article was drawn from a recent book written by Andrew Woolhouse, 13 – Lucky for Some: The History of the 13th (Lancashire) Parachute Battalion.

Animals have been used in war throughout history, the Second World War being no exception. Famous examples include message-carrying pigeons, soldier-bears, and anti-tank dogs.

In the case of the 13th Battalion, the dogs were trained to perform tasks such as locating mines, keeping watch, warning about enemies, and even serving as morale boosting mascots (indeed, dogs were also commissioned at US and British air bases for that sole purpose).

https://io9.gizmodo.com/remembering-the-heroic-parachuting-dogs-of-d-day-1485892775

These canines are truly the unsung heroes….time for them to enter the light…..

I Read, I Write, You Know

“lego ergo scribo”