Ethan Baron, Canwest News Service
Published: Wednesday, November 19, 2008
KANDAHAR PROVINCE, Afghanistan - Let slip the pets of war.
Canadian soldiers can't always count on the civilian population for support in this battle-ravaged province, but dogs and cats are jumping into the war effort with all four paws.
At major military bases and remote combat-zone outposts, animals help keep soldiers healthy, happy and safe.
Mushe the dog showed up as a puppy at a tiny fortified Canadian training post for Afghan National Police in Panjwaii District, where many of Canada's combat deaths have occurred. She started off as a morale-building pet living within the confines of the outpost, but has become indispensable in the Taliban-ridden fields and villages that surround it
"All of a sudden, she got out one day, and there she was on patrol," said Master-Cpl. Gary O'Brien, of New Glasgow, N.S. "She checks all the intersections for us before we get there, and, if she barks, something's up. She'll go into a compound, she goes all the way around. If she barks, somebody's in the compound. If she doesn't bark, it's clear."
The young white dog helps keep Afghan men of fighting age -- always an unknown quantity here -- a safe distance from Canadian soldiers.
"She doesn't let any locals too close, unless they're little kids," Master-Cpl. O'Brien said.
At the Canadian provincial reconstruction team base in Kandahar City, a clan of cats keeps the mouse population down. It's not that the heavily armed troops are afraid of mice, but rather what come with the rodents: vipers.
Deep in the heart of Taliban country, Ghost the dog spends his days sleeping on a warm patch of sand in a dusty Canadian forward-operating base in Panjwaii District and his nights fighting jackals and barking at anyone who approaches the razor wire-topped fortifications.
"He's our best warning," said Petty Officer Shawn Coates of the Joint District Co-ordination Centre, a unit charged with helping Afghan civilians. "He's better than any radar you could have when it comes to personnel movements."
The jackals that used to come sniffing around the base don't get anywhere near the JDCC, thanks to Ghost, Petty Officer Coates said as mushroom clouds from bombs detonating three kilometres away marked the site of a battle between Canadian troops and Taliban.
Having the animals around also boosts morale, said Master Warrant Officer Marc Cloutier of 2 Service Battalion from CFB Petawawa. "Especially the kittens. It kind of gives a little touch of home."
Cpl. Nikki Bucci of 2 Military Police unit in Petawawa, who has taught Mushe to shake hands and is working on teaching her to lie down, says the dog has been "amazing -- keeps you sane, too."
Now, Cpl. Gordon Martin of 2 Military Police unit in Petawawa is looking into bringing Mushe home to his farm when his tour is over.
"If we could get her back to Canada, and have her running around on the farm all the time, I think she'd be happy," he said. "I'd hate to leave her and have something happen to her. She's just unreal." http://www.canada.com/ottawacitizen/news/story.html?id=b6d31fc7-e3ec-4f04-9fc7-2f1213e632ca
Published: Wednesday, November 19, 2008
KANDAHAR PROVINCE, Afghanistan - Let slip the pets of war.
Canadian soldiers can't always count on the civilian population for support in this battle-ravaged province, but dogs and cats are jumping into the war effort with all four paws.
At major military bases and remote combat-zone outposts, animals help keep soldiers healthy, happy and safe.
Mushe the dog showed up as a puppy at a tiny fortified Canadian training post for Afghan National Police in Panjwaii District, where many of Canada's combat deaths have occurred. She started off as a morale-building pet living within the confines of the outpost, but has become indispensable in the Taliban-ridden fields and villages that surround it
"All of a sudden, she got out one day, and there she was on patrol," said Master-Cpl. Gary O'Brien, of New Glasgow, N.S. "She checks all the intersections for us before we get there, and, if she barks, something's up. She'll go into a compound, she goes all the way around. If she barks, somebody's in the compound. If she doesn't bark, it's clear."
The young white dog helps keep Afghan men of fighting age -- always an unknown quantity here -- a safe distance from Canadian soldiers.
"She doesn't let any locals too close, unless they're little kids," Master-Cpl. O'Brien said.
At the Canadian provincial reconstruction team base in Kandahar City, a clan of cats keeps the mouse population down. It's not that the heavily armed troops are afraid of mice, but rather what come with the rodents: vipers.
Deep in the heart of Taliban country, Ghost the dog spends his days sleeping on a warm patch of sand in a dusty Canadian forward-operating base in Panjwaii District and his nights fighting jackals and barking at anyone who approaches the razor wire-topped fortifications.
"He's our best warning," said Petty Officer Shawn Coates of the Joint District Co-ordination Centre, a unit charged with helping Afghan civilians. "He's better than any radar you could have when it comes to personnel movements."
The jackals that used to come sniffing around the base don't get anywhere near the JDCC, thanks to Ghost, Petty Officer Coates said as mushroom clouds from bombs detonating three kilometres away marked the site of a battle between Canadian troops and Taliban.
Having the animals around also boosts morale, said Master Warrant Officer Marc Cloutier of 2 Service Battalion from CFB Petawawa. "Especially the kittens. It kind of gives a little touch of home."
Cpl. Nikki Bucci of 2 Military Police unit in Petawawa, who has taught Mushe to shake hands and is working on teaching her to lie down, says the dog has been "amazing -- keeps you sane, too."
Now, Cpl. Gordon Martin of 2 Military Police unit in Petawawa is looking into bringing Mushe home to his farm when his tour is over.
"If we could get her back to Canada, and have her running around on the farm all the time, I think she'd be happy," he said. "I'd hate to leave her and have something happen to her. She's just unreal." http://www.canada.com/ottawacitizen/news/story.html?id=b6d31fc7-e3ec-4f04-9fc7-2f1213e632ca
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