Miltary use of animals WWII.

[Tony Smith]

Australian Signallers in WW2 also used carrier pigeons to relay messages, firstly in the Syrian Campaign, and later in the campaigns in New Guinea and the Islands. Not much of a Bird lover myself, I don't really understand how a mobile Patrol could get a bird to return "Home" to a mobile HQ, but now I see they taught them to read road signs.

[Robert Dabkowski]

... used by the Poles in Italy. He unloaded 25lber ammo for my father's transport unit.

The Americans very successfully "armed" bats with incendiary charges since they can fly their own weight. Released some way from Japanese buildings at night, from a bomber even, they would at dawn or before avail themselves of the roof spaces for roosting, especially wooden tropical buildings and the typical Japanese house.

Pigeons were a used to guide a munition also. The birds were trained to peck at a ship picture to get food and when captively placed in the nose cone of a guided bomb they would do this against a projected image of the target on a crude touch screen that effectively recorded x any y axis commands for munition guidance and thus brought the image back to centre as the corrections took effect on the fins.

As far-fetched as it seems this was entirely successful against ships but a step too far for the JCS committee belief.


The Russians developed an anti-tank dog that was kept half-starved and trained to go under a tank for food; it had a fairly big charge fitted to it and a wooden trigger handle sticking up from its back that would be operated as the dog tried to go under the vehicle. They sometimes preferred and recognised the Russian tanks used in training and sometimes got frightened by the noise, but some 300 German tanks were destroyed or disabled and it was taken very seriously.


R.

[Geoff Winnington-Ball (RIP)]

Originally Posted by Richard Notton

The Russians developed an anti-tank dog that was kept half-starved and trained to go under a tank for food; it had a fairly big charge fitted to it and a wooden trigger handle sticking up from its back that would be operated as the dog tried to go under the vehicle. They sometimes preferred and recognised the Russian tanks used in training and sometimes got frightened by the noise, but some 300 German tanks were destroyed or disabled and it was taken very seriously.

I'll betcha none of them did it more than once though.

[Alex Blair (RIP)]

Originally Posted by Geoff Winnington-Ball

I'll betcha none of them did it more than once though.

Bet none of these critters were "Volunteers"..

Wound Labs: The Department of Defense has operated "wound labs" since 1957. At these sites, conscious or semiconscious animals are suspended from slings and shot with high-powered weapons to inflict battlelike injuries for military surgical practice. In 1983, in response to public pressure, Congress limited the use of dogs in these labs, but countless goats, pigs, and sheep are still being shot, and at least one laboratory continues to shoot cats. At the Army's Fort Sam Houston "Goat Lab," goats are hung upside down and shot in their hind legs. After physicians practice excising the wounds, any goat who survives is killed.(13)

Other forms of military experiments include subjecting animals to decompression sickness, weightlessness, drugs and alcohol, smoke inhalation, and pure oxygen inhalation.

This last paragraph was actually conducted in some of the Airmans messes on most Friday nights..and the only animals around was us..

[Dennis Gelean (RIP)]

also known as gas masks, for camels,dogs,pigeons,goats, horses
the rarest is the goat gas mask, USofA soldiers had to watch with gas masks on
a goat die in agony while the goat with the mask was OK, They switched to a movie in 1944. I have 7 different horse gas masks. there are gas masks for infants, babies, kids, parents and of course military. Sweden had a gas mask for every man woman and child in 1939. Pigeons won more military medals than horses or dogs or my relatives
dennis

[Tony Smith]

Originally Posted by Dennis Gelean

Pigeons won more military medals than horses or dogs or my relatives
dennis

In Aust service, the bravery award to an animal (Dog, Bird, Horse, etc) is known as the Dickin Medal. What are the equivalents elsewhere?

[sapper740]

Originally Posted by Dennis Gelean

also known as gas masks, for camels,dogs,pigeons,goats, horses
the rarest is the goat gas mask, USofA soldiers had to watch with gas masks on
a goat die in agony while the goat with the mask was OK, They switched to a movie in 1944. I have 7 different horse gas masks. there are gas masks for infants, babies, kids, parents and of course military. Sweden had a gas mask for every man woman and child in 1939. Pigeons won more military medals than horses or dogs or my relatives
dennis

In my copy of "Defense Against Chemical Attack" (FM 21-40) dated September 7, 1942 there is an entire chapter devoted to protecting military animals from gas attack. They mention use of Horse Gas Masks M4 and M5 as well as a gas proof cover for the Pigeon Carrier complete with a bellows to refresh the air "twice every hour". Interesting stuff.

CHIMO! Derek

[sapper740]

Originally Posted by Richard Notton

The Americans very successfully "armed" bats with incendiary charges since they can fly their own weight. Released some way from Japanese buildings at night, from a bomber even, they would at dawn or before avail themselves of the roof spaces for roosting, especially wooden tropical buildings and the typical Japanese house.
R.

Richard, here's a picture of the "Bat Bomb"

CHIMO! Derek