War Dogs: Tales of Canine Heroism, History, and Love

by Rebecca Frankel, Thomas E. Ricks (Foreword by)

Overview

*A New York Times bestseller*

A compelling look at the important role that dogs have played in America's most recent military conflicts, replete with the touching stories of individual dogs and their handlers/soldiers

Under the cover of night, deep in the desert of Afghanistan, a US Army handler led a Special Forces patrol with his military working dog. Without warning an insurgent popped up, his weapon raised. At the handler's command, the dog charged their attacker. There was the flash of steel, the blur of fur, and the sound of a single shot; the handler watched his dog take a bullet. During the weeks it would take the dog to heal, the handler never left its side. The dog had saved his life.

Loyal and courageous, dogs are truly man's best friend on the battlefield. While the soldiers may not always feel comfortable calling the bond they form love, the emotions involved are strong and complicated. In War Dogs, Rebecca Frankel offers a riveting mix of on-the-ground reporting, her own hands-on experiences in the military working dog world, and a look at the science of dogs' special abilities—from their amazing noses and powerful jaws to their enormous sensitivity to the emotions of their human companions.

The history of dogs in the US military is long and rich, from the spirit-lifting mascots of the Civil War to the dogs still leading patrols hunting for IEDs today. Frankel not only interviewed handlers who deployed with dogs in wars from Vietnam to Iraq, but top military commanders, K-9 program managers, combat-trained therapists who brought dogs into war zones as part of a preemptive measure to stave off PTSD, and veterinary technicians stationed in Bagram. She makes a passionate case for maintaining a robust war-dog force. In a post-9/11 world rife with terrorist threats, nothing is more effective than a bomb-sniffing dog and his handler.

With a compelling cast of humans and animals, this moving book is a must read for all dog lovers—military and otherwise.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781250075079
Publisher:	St. Martin's Publishing Group
Publication date:	10/13/2015
Edition description:	Reprint
Pages:	272
Sales rank:	1,058,266
Product dimensions:	5.50(w) x 8.50(h) x 0.61(d)
Lexile:	1190L (what's this?)

About the Author

Rebecca Frankel is deputy editor at Foreign Policy. She is the author of War Dogs: Tales of Canine Heroism, History, and Love a New York Times bestselling book about canines in combat, the subject of her regular Friday column "Rebecca's War Dog of the Week," featured on The Best Defense. Her work has appeared in The Wall Street Journal, The Atlantic, National Geographic, Slate, The Washington Post, and elsewhere. Most recently, Frankel has been as a guest on Conan O'Brien, BBC World News, and the Diane Rehm Show, among others.

Table of Contents

Foreword Thomas E. Ricks ix

Author's Note xiii

Introduction: Dogs in the Time of War 1

Part I

1 When Dogs Become Soldiers 11

2 The House of Misfit Dogs 31

3 The Trouble with Loving a War Dog 53

4 Beware the Loving (War) Dog 73

Part II

5 A Dog of Many Talents 93

6 The Road to War Leads Through Yuma 127

7 The Fallen 165

Part III

8 Wounds and Healing 183

9 The Never Again Wars 205

10 Home Again, Home Again 213

Epilogue: What We Talk about When We Talk about War Dogs 227

Acknowledgments 231

Notes 235

Index 247

Editorial Reviews

In this moving yet uncompromising book, Rebecca Frankel pays a tender tribute to a very special breed of dogs and men.” —The Washington Times

“An exceptionally interesting and surprisingly moving book.” —Jonathan Yardley, The Washington Post

“At the beginning of War Dogs, Rebecca Frankel presents us with an uncomfortable truth: 'There is something less complicated (and ironically more human) about relating to war through the story of a dog.' By the end of her heart-warming and heart-wrenching book, you'll know what she means — if you don't already.” —Becky Krystal, The Washington Post

“Is a war dog 'a furry but devoted weapon?' Frankel, a senior editor at Foreign Policy, asks. 'A faithful fighter? A fierce soldier? A guardian who keeps watch in the night?” —Bronwen Dickey, The New York Times

“Military aficionados as well as dog lovers will learn from and enjoy this study of canine commandos and the service people who count on them.” —Publishers Weekly

“The relationship between the handler and the handled is 'built first on a mutual trust...with a greater sense of loyalty and even love,' and [Frankel's] examples affectingly prove the bond.” —Marine Corps Times

“This is a lovely book but it's also a surprising book. I opened it looking forward to reading a few good stories about the use of dogs in war. But midway through it, the realization hit me that this is something larger than that, and far deeper: it is a meditation on war and humans. It illuminates conflict from the unexpected angle of the allure of war, and the damage it does to both species.” —Thomas E. Ricks, Pulitzer Prize winning journalist

“Full of compelling stories about military dogs and the handlers who love them (and are often told not to). ... Frankel has done a brilliant job of taking us into another world of dogs and soldiers in war.” —Patricia McConnell, author of The Other End of the Leash

“Full of information about the nature, history, and training of military service canines, War Dogs sometimes reads like an adventure and sometimes reads like a novel that focuses on relationships and affection (here between a soldier and a dog). It is a very satisfying and often emotional read.” —Stanley Coren, author of The Wisdom of Dogs

“A truly wonderful account of ‘man's best friend' in combat—and post-combat—missions: an inspirational, moving book that explains the extraordinary nature of the relationship between dogs and their military handlers in war and the equally extraordinary nature of the relationships between canine companions and military veterans dealing with the seen and unseen wounds of combat.” —General David H. Petraeus (U.S. Army, Retired)

“As an active duty MWD handler, I am always thrilled but equally as wary to hear that someone has written about MWD teams (we're protective like that). Thankfully, Frankel has done a superb job in both communicating what these teams can do on a level that is understandable to civilian and military alike, and highlighting the unique and lasting bond built between dog and handler, a bond many could not otherwise understand.” —Military Working Dogs Facebook Page Administrator

“Skillfully...brilliant narrative.” —Military Review

From the Publisher

06/30/2014
Though she’s is a senior editor of special projects at Foreign Policy, Frankel’s weekly column about war dogs in the same publication is clearly where her heart lies; she shares her admiration for them in this frequently fascinating study of their role in the military. Dogs have been used in war for centuries, more often in more to take live than to save them, but their uses are many: they alert troops to danger, seek out bombs, send messages in hostile environments, and provide therapeutic comfort to veterans. Frankel explores all of these roles and more, explaining what makes dogs uniquely suited for these tasks, and shares numerous vignettes of dogs (and their handlers) in action, from training to deployment. Frankel’s stance on military’s use of dogs is far from passive. She is highly critical of the U.S. Army’s indifferent attitude to the effects of war on the dogs themselves, some of whom return from the field irrevocably changed and suffering from a canine version of PTSD. Her passion for her subject matter and deep appreciation for the dogs is heartwarming and inspiring throughout. Military aficionados as well as dog lovers will learn from and enjoy from this study of canine commandos and the service people who count on them. (Oct.)

Publishers Weekly

10/01/2016
Gr 7–10—In this young readers edition of her adult title of the same name, Frankel explores the roles that our canine friends play in warfare. A self-avowed animal lover and rescuer, the author displays enormous empathy for the dogs and their handlers throughout. Though the subject is military working dogs, their handlers aren't separated from the story. The descriptions of the various dogs, their handlers, and their deployments together are intermingled throughout. Most of the accounts focus on missions from Iraq and Afghanistan, though there are several from the Vietnam War. Frankel's remarkable ability to get up close and personal with these creatures and their handlers, highlighting their incredible bonds, makes for a full and rich work. Many of the mission scenarios contain graphic details, an element that may be troubling for sensitive readers. VERDICT A solid choice for those who love dogs and are interested in all things military.—Eldon Younce, Anthony Public Library, KS

School Library Journal

2016-07-20
Military service dogs perform a variety of roles, but those trained to sniff out IEDs are the primary focus of this effort.Like so many recent nonfiction works for young adults, this is a reworked version of a recent adult publication, also called War Dogs (2015). Frankel begins many chapters with brief, engaging narrative descriptions of war-dog missions or training episodes, then turns her attention to the details of the stories. Included are sad descriptions of missions that resulted in the deaths of dogs or handlers. One long section focuses on the extensive dog and handler training that goes on in a “K-9 village,” a realistic mock-up of an Iraqi town at the Yuma Proving Ground. There’s a proliferation of acronyms and initialisms, all included in a list in the extensive backmatter, and their use adds military flavor to the story that may appeal to some readers, but the sheer profusion of them can overwhelm. The volume is but lightly redacted (a reference to a dog as a “nasty little bitch” in the book for adults is prudishly absent here); the most striking difference involves the breaking up of the text into many more chapters than in the adult volume and integrating photographs into the narrative rather than isolating them in an insert. Sentence length and structure are not noticeably simplified for a young audience. Although fascinating, this lengthy effort seems nearly interchangeable with the adult version. (Nonfiction. 12-16)

Kirkus Reviews