Dragon Age Series #2; Mabari Hounds And Military Dogs

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Picture By U.S. Air Force Airman 1st Class Debbie Lockhart - Mountain Home Air Force Base (CC0)

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I'm not that hardcore in gaming but I do love video games. Recently, when I knew that the next series of Dragon Age games would be released in 2019 (let's hope so) after Inquisition in 2014, I became obsessed with it to the point that I played Origins all the way to Inquisition a few times, to discover every single ending and possible easter eggs. Last week, I have written an article explaining how Grey Wardens might have been killed by HIV instead. The taint that they were experiencing can originate from a retroviral infection that usually can be curbed by antiretroviral therapies that were, unfortunately, non-existent in the Dragon Age universe. Maybe it sounds like a dork, trying to explain every single thing that was happening in the game to the real world context, but it's fun.

In this episode, we are going to talk about some of the dogs that were being used in warfare (real world) inspired by the Mabari hound in the dragon age universe. Once again, for those who were not familiar with the game, don't worry, I would be focusing more on the use of dogs in warfare compared to the Mabari hound itself. Nevertheless, let me give you a little bit of an introduction to the Mabari Hound. In the Dragon Age universe, it is the hybrid of a dog and a wolf and what particularly interesting about the wolf is it was raised by the legendary hero, Dane who came from one of the earliest human tribes, the Alamarri. If you look at it closely, somehow, it does resemble Pitbull so I guess it could be it. In the Dragon Age universe, trying to cross-breed a wolf and a dog was deemed impossible by conventional methods, so they have to commit to sorcery. This is why Mabari Hounds are considered intelligent even more than an average individual.

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Screenshot From Dragon Age Origins

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Dogs In Warfare

Dogs have been an important animal which has been assisting humans in warfare but sadly, they were never recognised as someone or something that contribute to the outcome of the war, well not until world war II. Some even utilised a training program which restricts foods to jack up their hunger and increase their efficiency of detecting foods underneath the enemy's tank. Their body will be equipped with a few remote explosives and when they were running beneath the tank, the explosive will be triggered which would explode and kills the dog along with the tank; this particular dog has been called as the anti-tank dog. It's a freaking suicide squad but due to the fact that the dogs are hungry and they have the tendency to attack allies instead, they weren't used frequently. How successful was this strategy you asked? Well during the world war II, Soviet forces have successfully eliminated close to 300 German tanks by utilising 300 hungry mine-equipped dogs. They were small, agile and quite intelligent making it difficult for the opponent to disable them.

There are only close to 3000 dogs which have been formally conscripted into the United State army in 2010 and I expect the number is much bigger now considering how efficient they are in providing alternate ways of gathering intelligence. A report which has been published in the British Online Publication in 2010 has revealed that one of the elite forces in the United State, the US Navy Seal has been equipping some of their war dogs with expensive equipment which are capable of performing various feats mostly gathering information through all sort of recording devices like video camera that would be able to record and provide live feed to the base of operation and audio recording devices to gather evidence. If you think it is easier for enemies to eliminate such dogs when they were found, you were mistaken. They are equipped with various protective equipment which can increase their chance of survival such as bulletproof vests and weapons; one of the best covert operatives, won't you say?

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Picture Source - Pixabay (CC0)

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Everyone knows that dogs have a heightened sense of smell. They are capable of detecting odours in parts per trillion which are considered 10,000 times more accurate than the human's smell. To put it into something that everyone would understand if you can sense sugars which have been added into your morning coffee, dogs can smell the same amount of sugars in a million gallons of waters; it's like you were able to smell one rotten fruit which is kept in barrels of a few million good fruits. They are often being used to search for things related to warfare; mines, weapons, smuggled stuff, escaped enemies and even an ambush. It's pretty much futile to try and ambush a group of veteran soldiers and war dogs (they might already know you were there to ambush them). Sergeant Gordon Moen, one of the veterans of the Vietnamese war claimed that paying attention to your dog might have been worthwhile, even more so if that could have saved your life. Canines, for example, will show some signs and indications whenever they detect something "foreign" nearby. It is worth noting that dogs which can perform such a feat are highly trained, not your usual pet dogs.

Now, you were shot in the middle of a war, you were badly hurt but not to the point of dying; what would you do then? Of course, you will crawl to the nearest concealed area such as bushes which would make it difficult for enemies and even your comrades to be able to find you. Medics, in particular, were concerned with the ability of an injured soldier to keep on fighting. They will follow from the back, fixing soldiers with the highest rate of survival (small or moderate wounds) so that they can keep on pushing forward. However, finding injured soldiers among the dead/unfamiliar territories is not an easy task. Most of the safe and rescue missions were carried out at night which make it harder for them. In the midst of the darkness, came a rescue dog which is also known as the red cross dog that would be able to detect an injured soldier to be brought to the main camp and get treated. If you aware, in the movie or in a real setting rescue mission, a dog is an important part of the rescue effort. They can smell, hear and see better at night which make it easier for their masters.

It's practically undeniable that dogs do contribute a lot to the outcome of a warfare. They can run twice as the speed of an average human, equipped with better sensory organs and probably fight much better than humans too. Most of the dogs used by Romans were trained to attack humans relentlessly but today, war dogs are trained to hold a certain area, defensively. They are designed to catch, hold down enemies and sure, kill them if necessary. They are fearless and loyal, as long as they are being kept well by their masters. Well, unless they are agents of the anti-tank squad, they should have been fed and kept accordingly, I'm sure of it. If you want to find the Mabari of the real world, they can be it.

Three Famous War Dogs

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Picture By Cassowary Colorizations - Flickr (CC BY 2.0)

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Let's talk about a dog which has been awarded Purple Heart, Silver Star and sure, the Distinguished Service Cross for its services in the World War II, Chips. Unlike any other dogs which are bred for war purposes, Chips was donated by its previous owner and assigned to a private to be trained as a war dog. It is a mixed dog, bred from German Shepherd, Siberian Husky and Collie. Although it seems like a sad story, this is probably the best turning point for Chips as after the war, it has been awarded and recognised as one of the most well-decorated war dogs the United State government has ever owned. It helped bring down Italian squads that have been pinning down United State soldiers with a set of machine guns. During the fight, Chips broke away from its owner, attacking all of the gunners, successfully disarming them with only a minor powder burns and a scalp wound. I guess Chips did all of the pinned soldiers a favour, isn't it?

Although he was honoured with three awards for its services, they were revoked immediately after. It's not surprising since back then, dogs are rarely recognised for their contribution to their services. Chips served 8 war campaigns and none of it yields even a single commendation; fortunately, it was a dog. However in 2018, a few decades after, Chips was honoured with an award equivalent to the Victoria Cross for its services in the world war II. Rest in peace, Chips.

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Picture
By U.S. Air Force Airman 1st Class Brooke P. Beers - Kadena Air Base (CC0)

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This is a one paragraph story of a war dog who protected its owner from the Viet Cong guerrillas during the Vietnamese war in 1966. Bob Thorneburg, a 2nd class Airman was doing a patrol near the cemetery located in Vietnam. It was a nice and quiet evening, which can be considered unusual in the midst of war. While walking through the trees, suddenly, Nemo (a German Shepherd) started to bark. At the same time, a few guerillas army of Viet Cong started to shoot at them with a few rounds of bullets. Nemo hastily attacked the shooters which gave Bob sometimes to contact the airbase for some reinforcements. It's difficult since Bob's shoulder was shot and after making the call, he fell down into oblivion. Fortunately for him, Nemo has killed all of the invading soldiers.

Later, it walked towards Bob and sat beside him. When reinforcements arrived, Nemo wouldn't allow even Bob's comrades to touch him. It was a difficult time and without proper treatment, Bob will bleed to death. The other soldiers realised that Nemo's eyes have been shot so probably it can't see properly. It can only recognise its owner through a sense of smell and after a veterinarian arrived, both Bob and Nemo was brought to the base camp to be treated; both of them made it through and live. Even if Nemo has recovered, its still can't see much so it was retired from the forces and the army provided it with a kennel to commemorate its contribution to saving Bob. Nemo died 6 years later.

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Picture By Cindy Kowalski - Wikipedia (CC BY 2.0)

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Let me say this, I wouldn't have expected that a Yorkshire Terrier can be a war dog. They seem so cute and docile but for Smoky, it is an underestimated statement of what their species are capable of doing. She survived up to 150 air raids and has been one of the most useful dogs, exhibiting a keen sense of hearing which could have warned its handler regarding incoming artillery strikes. During the construction of an airstrip located at the Philippine Island in Luzon, Smoky plays an important part if pulling a telegraph wire through a narrow opening which saves everyone times and effort. Obviously, Smoky was never meant to be used as an attack dog, I mean, what do we do if we are getting attacked by a Yorkshire Terrier? That was pretty overconfident even for a war dog.

The Price Of Wars

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Picture By U.S. Air Force Airman Shawna L. Keyes - Seymour Johnson Air Force Base (CC0)

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Before the year 2000, people have been euthanising war dogs after they have completed their year of services and were deemed unfit to be a proper four-legged warrior. Euthanasia was thought as the best option for everyone as dogs which are usually being released from military services can be either too old, too sick or too mentally challenged. To be honest, I couldn't care less if war dogs are discharged because they are either old or sick, but if they are mentally unstable, then it is a different story. Putting them into a strict training program to maximise their learning curve can be quite stressful. It was estimated that only 50% will be qualified to be brought into numerous missions as a war dog operative. The rest? They would either be monitored for signs of improved performances, being kept as a potential replacement or being discharge/euthanised if they were found to be sick.

Post-traumatic stress disorder is a common disease of a veteran. People used to think dogs can be quite ideal being four-legged demons, running here and there killing people without hesitation but little that we know that, they were struggling with PTSD too. Their life would never be the same as before and that's why before the year 2000, killing them is considered as a viable option; it would be difficult for war dogs to live like a normal dog (just like humans). Beyond 2000, there are a lot of non-profitable organisations have been created with a sole purpose of either keeping all of the war dogs after retirement or give them to certain families so that they could try to live like a normal dog.

Agitation and depression have been witnessed among dogs which have lost their former master. Imprinting them to a new handler requires a great deal of time and effort so grieving dogs would act aggressively if it is to be given some instructions from other people which it thought as not their "master". In an article written by Margaret Warner, she described a case scenario whereby a dog called Sirius has been refusing to obey instructions after his handler, Corporal Joshua Ashley was killed by an IED (Improvised explosive devices) in Afghanistan. He showed some symptoms that could have suggested agitation and for several months, Sirius has to be detained from military works. Fortunately, after a few months, Sirius has recovered emotionally and it was imprinted to a new master. Psychological consequences can pose risks to both civilians and the military itself so careful measures have to be taken to ensure aggressive behaviour among war dogs are well-controlled. War is so uncertain, anyone can die, anytime, anyplace without much delay. If every single dog in a military camp loses their masters, we can expect to see a very hectic situation.

References And Further Reading Materials

• Mabari War Hounds. Retrieved on July 24th, 2018.
• Dogs' Dazzling Sense of Smell. Retrieved on July 24th, 2018.
• 10 Incredible Roles Performed By Dogs In Warfare. Retrieved on July 24th, 2018.
• War Dogs Forum Discussion. Retrieved on July 24th, 2018.
• Five Famous War Dogs. Retrieved on July 24th, 2018.
• Chips (dog). Retrieved on July 24th, 2018.
• 10 Things You May Not Know About Military Dogs. Retrieved on July 24th, 2018.
• The tale of a Marine and his war dog torn apart by death. Retrieved on July 24th, 2018.

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