Irish terriers, the little red dogs that went to war

[Boronia]

The video won't embed (I don't quite know what happened) so here is the link

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2017-04-23/irish-terriers,-the-little-red-dogs-that-went-to-war/8442204

Irish terriers, the little red dogs that went to war

By Simon Royal

Posted Sun at 10:32am

Media player: "Space" to play, "M" to mute, "left" and "right" to seek.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Video: Irish terriers' tenacity and energy put to work in WWI (ABC News)

Map: Adelaide 5000

The Carthaginian general Hannibal Barca had his elephants, and a war with Rome.

Alexander the Great had his horse, Bucephalus, and a vast empire.

Simpson had his donkey at Gallipoli, and the admiration of a nation.

And in the muddy, gore-filled trenches of WWI, if a humble soldier was lucky, he may have shared digs with a ginger-haired Irish terrier.

Long-time Irish terrier owner Shylie Davidson said such a soldier would have counted themselves fortunate.

"They are wonderful company," Ms Davidson said.

"I would have thought to have an Irish around on the front line would have just been their saviour.

"They are tough, but they also have just so much empathy."

Both sides used dogs throughout WWI, particularly in the trenches of France and Belgium.

 

Photo: War dogs take a break with soldier. (Supplied)

 

The breeds selected, unsurprisingly, reflected a certain nationalism: the Germans used German shepherds and pinschers, while the English (and their allies) sought collies, Airedales, Irish terriers and Welsh terriers.

And even in class-conscious Britain, being less than purebred wasn't an impediment, at least if you were a dog.

Mutts that showed promise were routinely recruited from stray dog homes.

 

Terriers 'easily taught' duties

Britain's dog training program was overseen by Lieutenant Colonel Edwin Richardson, who along with his wife Blanche Bannon had recognised the military value of dogs early on.

The dogs were trained as sentries and guard dogs.

 

Photo: Irish terriers Pat, Fergus and Connor play with a toy in Adelaide. (ABC News: Simon Royal)

 

One of the most critical roles though, in an age before widespread electronic communication, was to carry messages between the trenches and back to command headquarters.

After the war in 1920, Richardson wrote about his methods and observations in a book, British War Dogs.

He wasn't a fan of retrievers, unless they had a "strong cross of collie or sheep dog in them".

Airedales were considered excellent all-rounders.

And the Lieutenant Colonel spoke glowingly of the Airedale's smaller terrier relatives.

"It must be admitted, however, many of our best dogs were Irish terriers and Welsh terriers," he wrote.

"These little fellows were remarkably easily taught, and were tremendously keen on their work."

Irish terriers also proved to be excellent rat catchers.

The rodents found the trenches much to their liking, breeding in huge numbers, adding to the miserable conditions for soldiers.

 

Photo: Lieutenant Colonel Edwin Richardson wrote a book about training the dogs. (ABC News: Simon Royal)

 

The Irish did have one drawback: the friendliness that made them such good company.

Richardson wrote it was a characteristic that made them less than diligent messenger dogs.

"They are fond of greeting friends … old, new and imaginary!"

None of this comes as a surprise to Ms Davdison, who describes her Irish terrier Finn as having a richer social life than she does.

"Finn definitely has more friends than I do, both two-legged and four-legged," Ms Davidson said.

"They are the most outgoing sociable dogs … they are just lovely engaging dogs."

The soldiers thought so too.

Edited April 24, 2017 by Boronia

[RuralPug]

Love it!

 

[Her Majesty Dogmad]

Love those Irish Terriers!!