In WWI the British, Belgian, French and Italian armies trained thousands of dogs as sentries and messengers. They also found and comforted wounded men on the battlefield. The Germans also deployed over 7000 dogs with many more in reserve. The US had no such program.

But a small stray bull terrier named Stubby was adopted by the 102nd infantry and smuggled aboard a troop ship to France and there he would prove his mettle. Stubby carried messages under fire, sought out the wounded and stayed with them until help arrived. Women in France fashioned a blanket for the 'Hero Dog' to wear. More and more medals were pinned to his cloak. After 17 battles, Stubby returned to America where General Pershing awarded him a special gold medal. He marched in parades around the country and met numerous Presidents and dignitaries. Old age finally took Stubby in 1926.

Within one month of Pearl Harbor in December of 1941, America's canine trainers had established DFD-Dogs for Defense-and soon began to work with the Coast Guard. By April of 1942 dogs were seving as sentries at Army depots and defense plants. By the summer all service branches were actively exploring the use of dogs to work as guards, mine sniffers, medics, MP's scouts, messengers and even tactical fighters. Within one year over 125,000 dogs were in service.

We recognize and salute, along with those brave dogs serving at the site of the World Trade Center in NYC, some of their predecessors who paved the way....

STUBBY: The original war dog. The 102nd Infantry's bull terrier was in 17 battles during WWI saving many US soldiers lives.

CHIPS: Army dog Chips attacked a pillbox on Sicily in 1943, taking four prisoners. He earned a silver star and a Purple Heart which were later revoked (for shame) when the Commander of the Order of the Purple Heart complained to President Rooselvelt that bestowing the medal on a dog demeaned all the 'men' who had received it.

NEMO: A VietNam Hero, despite losing an eye to gunfire, Nemo, an Air Force sentry, threw himself on four Viet Cong to save his handler in 1966. Both survived.

ANDY: A Doberman pinscher saved a Marine tank platoon pinned down on the island of Bougainville by flushing Japanese machine-gunners from their nest in WW2.