In the fiery years of World War II, when the homeland was in danger, not only people, but also animals defended it. A striking example are dogs. They heroically showed themselves on all fronts, coping with a wide variety of tasks. The role of dogs during the Great Patriotic War is widely described in this article.
Dog use during hostilities
The experience of using dogs in war has been known for a very long time. We learn about this from written sources, as well as from monuments of ancient art (rock art). Even in the ancient world, trained dog units were used for offensive operations of the army. With the advent of firearms, the offensive role of dogs decreased significantly, they began to be used as signalmen, orderlies and cartridges. For example, during the Russo-Japanese War of 1904-1905, dogs were used in some parts of the Russian army for sanitary and guard purposes. A separate and unique case is the heroism shown by dogs during the Great Patriotic War. Photos that can not be counted are direct confirmation of this fact.
Use of dogs during the Second World War
On the fronts of the Great War, a huge number of units of fighting dogs operated. In total, more than 70 thousand “human friends” of the most diverse breeds passed along the military paths from Moscow and Kursk to Prague and Berlin. Dogs during the Great Patriotic War, performing combat missions, made a huge contribution to the overall victory over the enemy.
Four-legged fighters
Dogs participating in hostilities by no means all were of a good breed and did not possess the best qualities for the reason that as early as 1941 thoroughbred dogs died while serving in tank destroyer detachments. Therefore, there was a need to train new units of outbred dogs.
The first training showed a high result. The mongrels were unpretentious, strong and, to the surprise of the dog breeders, easily succumbed to training. They were used to carry out a variety of combat missions: delivering cartridges and products, guarding, transporting the wounded, mining the territory, reconnaissance, extermination of armored vehicles, sabotage, establishing communications, etc. The exploits of dogs during the Great Patriotic War were widely known to the whole Soviet people, they are still remembered.
Dog Front
On all military fronts, it was trained and formed into special combat units:
- 17 battalions of dog miners;
- 14 squads of dogs - fighter armored vehicles;
- 37 sled dog battalions;
- 2 specialized units;
- 4 battalions of connected units.
Sled dogs
Long before the start of the war, in 1924, a nursery for training military and sled dogs was equipped at the Vystrel military school. The institution formed groups of not only sled teams, but also signalmen, orderlies and sappers.
The first time dog sledding was used in the Winter War of the USSR against Finland. In 1940, sled dogs showed themselves so well that the army headquarters established a new sledding service.
Sled dogs during the Great Patriotic War were a very important part of the transport connection between the army units in both winter and summer.
With the help of sledding teams, the wounded were taken from the battlefield, reinforcements and ammunition were delivered to firing positions. Sledges were especially effective in winter in the conditions of impassability and snowdrifts.
Dog riding units, which are about 15 thousand teams, during the war took out more than 6500 thousand wounded from the battlefield, brought over 3.5 tons of ammunition and ammunition to the positions, and also delivered an uncountable amount of food.
Nurse dogs
Dogs for sanitary purposes possessed excellent smell and abilities of a detective, therefore they found wounded not only on the battlefield, but also in the forest thicket, swamp. Then they brought them to the military field hospital, while carrying emergency medications on them. A dog nurse named Mukhtar during the fighting brought about 400 seriously wounded soldiers from the battlefield. Such records are unique in world military history.
Dogs-orderlies during the Great Patriotic War acted very harmoniously and smartly. They were admired even by western war correspondents who visited the Soviet Union.
Demolition dogs
"Subversive" dogs during World War II were perhaps the most selfless examples of defenders of the homeland. Already in the summer of 1941, dogs went to German tanks - fighters of such vehicles. German troops did not expect such a tactical move and lost a significant amount of equipment. Their command even issued special instructions to the tank crews to combat dogs - tank destroyers. But Soviet dog breeders expected this and began to train the demolitions more diligently.
Dogs were taught to quickly rush under equipment from a short distance, to immediately find themselves in a tank area inaccessible to machine guns. A mine was laid in the demolition pack, which contained 3-4 kilograms of explosive and a special detonator.
Over the years of bloody battles, demolition dogs destroyed a total of more than 300 enemy tanks, as well as armored personnel carriers, assault guns and other equipment. In the future, the need for such dogs disappeared, since the tank and artillery power of the Soviet Union increased so much that it could freely withstand the German army without such expenses. In the fall of 1943, detachment dog detachments were liquidated. To understand how dogs helped people during World War II, the following fact can be cited. In the Battle of Stalingrad alone, subversive dogs destroyed 42 tanks and 3 armored vehicles.
Mine Detector Dogs
At the end of 1940, the first small detachment of dog miners was created, and instructions for their training were developed.
Dogs that were engaged in mine clearance in the Soviet Union, there were about 6 thousand. For the entire time of the war, they cleared about four million charges of various kinds. These actions saved the lives of tens of thousands of people. Hero dogs cleared Kiev, Novgorod, Warsaw, Vienna, Berlin and Budapest.
A prominent dog handler and officer A. P. Mazover, who commanded a battalion of mine-seekers during the war years, came up with the legendary “plate 37”. Seeing this inscription on the road, everyone understood that safe movement is guaranteed by a sensitive dog scent. Among the most talented dogs were champions who cleared about 12 thousand mines during the whole war. Having comprehended this figure, you will appreciate the enormous role played by miner dogs during the Great Patriotic War.
Mine Detector Tasks
During the war years, detachments of dog miners performed the following combat missions.
- In preparation for offensive operations, miner dogs were used to make moves in minefields. Thus, rifle units and armored vehicles could pass through them.
- One of the main tasks of the miner dogs was to clear the transport roads, which the enemy, while retreating, constantly mined.
- If time and situation allowed, the units were used for the complete clearance of settlements, individual buildings, and generally the terrain.
Sabotage dogs
During the Great Patriotic War, such type of units as sabotage dogs were used in SMERSH units to search for enemy saboteurs, especially German snipers. The sabotage detachment consisted of several dogs, a rifle squad, a signalman and an NKVD worker. The abandonment of such a detachment was preceded by thorough and painstaking preparation, selection and training. Dogs-saboteurs successfully performed not only the tasks of the search, but also undermined the German compositions, even during movement.
Shepherd Dog Dina
A vivid example of a saboteur dog is the Dean Shepherd. She served in the 14th sapper brigade and went down in history as a participant in the “rail war” in Belarus. While still young, the shepherd went through very good training at a military dog breeding school. After that, she worked under the command of a dog handler Dina Volkats in the 37th separate engineering battalion.
The shepherd successfully put her talent into practice. So, in mid-August 1943, Dina blew up an enemy squad on the Polotsk – Driss stretch. The shepherd literally flew onto the rails right in front of the approaching train in which the German officers were, dropped the pack with a charge, pulled out the detonator with its teeth and ran into the forest. As a result of the explosion, about 10 wagons of enemy manpower were destroyed, and the railway was also disabled.
During the Great Patriotic War, Dean's dog carried out dozens of successful sabotage operations, and also helped clear the city of Polotsk.
Scout dogs
Dogs involved in reconnaissance proved to be more than excellent, especially in operations such as Rail War and Concert. This type of fighting dogs ensured the invisibility of scouts' passage to the rear of the enemy’s defense and the success of their activities among the vast majority of opponents. If there was a scout dog in the search group, it was not difficult to prevent an unwanted clash with an enemy ambush. Scout dogs received special training and never barked. The fact that a detachment of enemy forces was discovered, the dog informed the owner only with specific movements of the corps. The legendary scout dog named Fog knew how to silently knock down the sentries at the post and make a mortal grip on the back of the head, after which the scouts could safely operate behind enemy lines.
Also, scout dogs could detect enemy sabotage groups that tried to covertly penetrate the line of Soviet defense.
Feats of dogs during World War II
Archival information of the history of the Great Patriotic War stores the names of the true friends of man. Demolitionists Plaque and Dick, scouts Sailor and Jack, miners Boy, Elik, Dick. They all died ...
For a better understanding of the role that dogs played during the Great Patriotic War, you should find out their exploits.
- The shepherd Mukhtar was already mentioned. Corporal Zorin taught her (and subsequently became a guide). For all the years of the war, the dog carried over 400 seriously wounded soldiers from the battlefield. He also saved his own, shell-shocked by the explosion of a shell, a conductor.
- A guard shepherd named Agay discovered dozens of times German saboteurs who tried to get into the rear of the Red Army.
- A dog named Bulba worked as a liaison officer at the front. For the entire time of the war he transmitted more than 1.5 thousand dispatches and laid hundreds of kilometers of cable. And the camp counselor Terentev taught him this craft.
- A dog named Jack with his guide, Corporal Kisagulov, went through the whole war as scouts. On their general account, dozens of captured “languages”, among which there were officers. In such a combination, a man and a dog could do amazing things. As you can see, service dogs during the Great Patriotic War played an important role.
- Laika, whose name was Bobik, together with his guide Dmitry Trokhov, took over 1,600 wounded from the front line for three years of military service. The conductor was awarded the medal "For Courage" and the Order of the Red Star. Which is a little unfair, since the orderly for 80 soldiers taken out of the battlefield was given the title Hero.
- Signal dog Rex crossed the Dnieper three times in one day under heavy fire from machine guns and artillery, delivering very important documents. And all this was in the cold November water.
Volleys of guns long ago died. Many people who trained military dogs are no longer in the world, as are the legendary participants of the Great Patriotic War. But in the people's memory, the feat of the four-legged friends of the soldiers is alive.