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Above photo credit: 11/3/1945 WAR DOGS RETURN… First members of infantry scout dog platoons to arrive from overseas get back their land legs by limbering up with their masters, as this one does here. He returned with over 90 dogs that served wth the 5th Army in Italy. (Getty Images)

Article by Lishamarie Hunter

Man’s best friend.

Call ‘em what you want — war dogs or military working dogs — they have been around for centuries worldwide. The states had an unofficial canine war force in World War I, but military dogs did not become officially recognized until March 13, 1942, when a private organization, Dogs for Defense was established to recruit the public’s dogs for the U.S. military’s War Dog Program, known as the K-9 Corps.

WWII in the Pacific theater, Doberman Pinschers served as sentries, scouts, and messengers.

It quickly became apparent there would not be enough of those breed of dogs to meet the demand. They opened up the field to include 30 breeds, led by Airedale Terriers, Boxers, Labrador Retrievers, German Shepherd Dogs, and Saint Bernards. American donors were given a certificate by the government as a means of thanks for their “patriotic duty.” Dogs were immediately sent into training, where some excelled and others didn’t. Wash-outs were returned to their owners; those who passed were eventually sent into battle from foxholes to beach fronts, where they were utilized for messenger, mine-detection, sentry and scout duties.

Eventually, the military began training its own dogs, but by the war’s end, Dogs for Defense procured approximately 18,000 of the 20,000 dogs. One famous furry warrior was Chips. Chip was a German Shepard/Husky mix was credited with saving many United States soldiers lives. Chip earned a Purple Heart and Silver Star. This German Shepherd mix, one of the most famous combat canines of World War II, once conducted a daring raid on a sniper nest in Sicily, breaking away from his handler and capturing four enemy soldiers.

Five years after WWII, the Korean Conflict triggered the need for military working dogs again. They were chiefly deployed on combat night patrols and were detested by the North Koreans and Chinese because of their ability to ambush snipers, penetrate enemy lines and scent out enemy positions. It reached a point where reports noted the foes were using loudspeakers saying, “Yankee, take your dog and go home!” The dogs were chiefly used to patrol air base perimeters and guarding bomb dumps.

Fast forward to Vietnam – a totally new environment and job description for these “fur missiles,” as some military dog handlers described them. In a terrific chronology, Their duties were widespread – scout, sentry, patrol, mine and booby-trap detection, water and combat. The Viet Cong hated the dogs so intensely they put $20,000 bounty for their capture. These dogs walked sentry and alerted the service members to many Viet Cong ambushes. An estimated 4,000 dogs and 9,000 military-dog handlers served in Vietnam.

During the evacuation of Vietnam, the military working dogs that served our forces and saved many service members lives were left behind. They were classified as “surplus equipment.” Many handlers were willing to pay their dog’s flight home, the military would not allow them to do so. During this time some were transferred to the South Vietnamese military and police units who were not trained to handle them and others were euthanized. It is estimated that of 4,000 that served, fewer than 200 made it back to the U.S. Because of this in 2000 Congress passed the “Robby Law” allowing other law enforcement agencies to adopt the dogs.

In stark contrast to Vietnam, the hot, dusty environments of Iraq and Afghanistan serve up a new set of challenges for military working dogs trained for explosive and drug detection, sentry, therapy and service. Cairo, a Belgian Malinois, was a member of Seal Team Six that killed Osama bin Laden. A new breed of elite canine soldier, a Special Forces dog’s training covers such skills as bomb-sniffing and parachuting from helicopters.

Dogs’ sense of smell is roughly 50 times better than ours, meaning they can sniff out IEDs before they detonate and injure or kill U.S. servicemen in the prolonged Iraq and Afghanistan conflicts.

Ground patrols are able to uncover only 50 percent of these, but with dogs, the detection rate increases to 80 percent, claims the Defense Department. According to retired Air Force K9 handler, Louis Robinson, a fully trained bomb detection canine is likely worth over $150,000, and considering the lives it may save, you could characterize it as priceless.

Read more articles from VOM Magazine here: https://www.veteransoutreachministries.org/vom-magazine/

Original article from www.NationalFlagFoundation.org

If you’ve ever attended a military funeral, perhaps you noticed that the honor guards pay meticulous attention to folding the U.S. flag that once draped the casket. Guards make crisp, precise folds a total of 13 times to complete the ceremony. Much like every other aspect of our nation’s greatest symbol, each of the 13 folds holds significance.

Flag etiquette dictates that every time an American flag is to be stored or presented during a ceremony, its handlers should fold it in half twice lengthwise; then starting with the end opposite the blue field, make a taut triangular fold. Handlers continue to fold the flag in triangles until the flag has formed a triangular “pillow” with the blue field showing on the outside. It’s a dignified way to treat the flag, and gives a powerful touch to patriotic ceremonies.

This 13-fold procedure was common long before the more modern assigned meanings. The source and date of origin of the meanings is unknown, but for those who participate or witness a formal flag folding ceremony, the 13 meanings can create an uplifting experience.

This is what the 13 folds mean:

1. The first fold of our flag is a symbol of life.
2. The second fold signifies our belief in eternal life.
3. The third fold is made in honor and tribute of the veteran departing our ranks, and who gave a portion of his or her life for the defense of our country to attain peace.
4. The fourth fold exemplifies our weaker nature as citizens trusting in God; it is to Him we turn for His divine guidance.
5. The fifth fold is an acknowledgement to our country, for in the words of Stephen Decatur, “Our country, in dealing with other countries, may she always be right, but it is still our country, right or wrong.”
6. The sixth fold is for where our hearts lie. It is with our heart that we pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America, and to the republic for which it stands, one nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.
7. The seventh fold is a tribute to our armed forces, for it is through the armed forces that we protect our country and our flag against all enemies.
8. The eighth fold is a tribute to the one who entered into the valley of the shadow of death, that we might see the light of day, and to honor our mother, for whom it flies on Mother’s Day.
9. The ninth fold is an honor to womanhood, for it has been through their faith, love, loyalty, and devotion that the character of men and women who have made this country great have been molded.
10. The 10th fold is a tribute to father, for he, too, has given his sons and daughters for the defense of our country since he or she was first-born.
11. The 11th fold, in the eyes of Hebrew citizens, represents the lower portion of the seal of King David and King Solomon and glorifies, in their eyes, the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.
12. The 12th fold, in the eyes of a Christian citizen, represents an emblem of eternity and glorifies, in their eyes, God the Father, the Son, and Holy Ghost.
13. The last fold, when the flag is completely folded, the stars are uppermost, reminding us of our national motto, “In God We Trust.”

Read more articles from VOM Magazine here: https://www.veteransoutreachministries.org/vom-magazine/

Holidays to Display Flag
June – August 2023

• Flag Day – June 14
• U.S. Army Founded – June 14, 1775
• Father’s Day – June 18
• Independence Day – July 4
• National Korean War Veterans Armistice Day – July 27
• Korean War Ended – July 27, 1953

And such other days as may be proclaimed by the President of the United States.

Non Flag Display Days
(for information only)

• D-Day Allied Invasion of Europe – June 6, 1944
• Summer Begins (Longest Day) – June 21
• Pledge of Allegiance Recognized by Congress – June 22, 1942
• G. I. Bill signed into law – June 22, 1944
• Korean War Began –June 25, 1950
• National Post Traumatic Stress Awareness Day – June 27
• Post 9/11 G I Bill Signed into Law – June 30
• U.S. Air Corps Established – July 2, 1926
• World War 1 Began – July 28, 1914
• U.S. Coast Guard Established – August 4, 1790
• Purple Heart Medal Established – August 7, 1782
• Vietnam War Began – August 7, 1964
• Japan Surrended Ending WWII – August 14, 1945
• National Navajo Code Talkers Day – August 14
• National Airborne Day – August 16
• National Aviation Day – August 19
• Women’s Equality Day – August 26

This information was taken from the Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW) 2022/2023 Calendar.

Read more articles from VOM Magazine here: https://www.veteransoutreachministries.org/vom-magazine/

1. The flag should be hoisted brisklyand lowered ceremoniously.
2. The flag is never allowed totouch the ground or the floor.
3. When hung over a sidewalk on a rope extending from a building to a pole, the union stars are always away from the building.
4. When vertically hung over the center of the street, the flag always has the union stars to the north in an east/west street, and to the east in a north/south street.
5. The flag of the United States of America should be at the center and at the highest point of the group when a number of flags of states or localities or pennants of societies are grouped and displayed from staffs.
6. The flag should never be festooned, drawn back, nor up, in folds, but always allowed to fall free.
7. The flag should be displayed at half-staff until noon on Memorial Day then raised to the top of the staff.
8. Never fly the flag upside down except as a signal of distress in instances of extreme danger to life or property.
9. The flag is never flown in inclemenet weather except when using an all-weather flag.
10. The flag can be flown every day from sunrise to sunset and at night if properly illuminated.

Read more articles from VOM Magazine here: https://www.veteransoutreachministries.org/vom-magazine/