Everybody knows that dog is man’s best friend, but that goes doubly for a military or police dog and a handler: there are times when that relationship is a life-or-death matter. And in “Paws of Courage” by Nancy Furstinger, you’ll find mini-stories of those bonds, past and present.
Dogs, of course, have served on the battlefield for millennia, but history only remembers a handful of brave canine soldiers. In World War I, Sergeant Stubby, a pit bull mix, saved countless lives by warning soldiers of incoming bombs and by alerting them to enemy presence.
Tiny Smoky, a Yorkshire terrier, helped soldiers by doing the same thing in World War II, and due to her size, was also able to help “thread vital wires” through a narrow underground pipe. An English Pointer named Judy followed her handler to a prisoner-of-war camp in World War II, and was eventually listed as a prisoner-of-war for her own protection.
Also during World War II, around 10,000 family dogs became K-9 soldiers, sentries, and sniffers, including a German Shepherd mix named Chips, who was honored for bravery on the battlefield and for capturing enemy soldiers all by himself.
Belgian Malinois dogs, says Furstinger, are “canine superheroes” with speed and courage and are a “top breed for police and military work.” Newfoundlands are excellent swimmers and can dive; for those heroic maneuvers, they’re employed in water rescue. Labrador retrievers make great arson dogs.
You would have had to have been born two months ago to not know that dogs are important members of military troops, crime-fighting organizations, and anti-drug efforts. For most of us, it’s always been that way; K-9 corps are a common sight.
So why read “Paws of Courage?”
I wondered that myself. Furstinger tells some rather common tales of military and working dogs, then and now; you might not recognize them individually, but the stories are familiar, if not similar to others you’ve browsed or seen online. Been there, read it, kept the collar — except for two easy-to-love things: the abundance of pictures in this book and the sidebars of information.
You might find this book in the children’s section of your favorite bookish place, but I think it’s more for readers ages 14 to adult.
Give “Paws of Courage” to your dog-lover, and you’ll be a hero, too.
“Paws of Courage: True Tales of Heroic Dogs That Protect and Serve,” by Nancy Furstinger, foreword by Ronald L. Aiello [160 pages, 2016, $12.99].
Terri Schlichenmeyer has been reading since she was 3 years old, and she never goes anywhere without a book. She lives on a hill with two dogs and 12,000 books.
