The West Virginian. [volume] (Fairmont, W. Va.) 1914-1974, 1915-01-26
REDGROSS DOGS
NEVER FAIL 10
Find WOUNDED
Many Men Of All Nations
Owe Lives to the Faith
full Animals.
''P0E!GE l0GS'' Do NELL
ARE TRAINED UNDER A SYSTEM
WHERE PATIENCE is CHIEF
ELEMENT.

.l-g ha 40 10 l.4H n.y. rfs sEIlftf eAl4 q. ~
AIX:LA.CHAPELLE, Jan. 26.-The
records of the German Red Cross de-
partment show that SO far. after
nearly four months of warfare, not.
a single wounded man has been over
looked on a battlefield searched by
Red Cross Dogs" AS a result OF
this the term mans best friend,,'
which is often applied to dogs, has
real significance to the German sol.
der today. Many a wounded soldier,
French, German and English alike,
has to thank one of these dogs for
the preservation Of his life. Had Il
not been that the dog had found him
and summoned assistance he might
have persisted.
It has been shown that all breeds
Of dogs may be trained for this sery-
ice. The majority employed by the
German Red Cross are Dobermanns,
German shepherds, Rottweilers, and
Airedale terriers. There are repre-.
sentatives Of other canine families,
however. and nc a few would be
classed as ours" In fact some Of
the mixed breeds have distinguished
themselves for the rapidly with
which they have learned their bust
ness. A breed known in Belgium as
the police dog" has also done we'll.
Many Red Cross dogs had been
trained by the German army before
the war broke out. In this case train
ing had started when the animal was
about six months old. For about six
months after the dog has been taken
in hand he Is taught no more than
to obey his master. implicitly. After
that his professional education be-
gins. Since the outbreak Of the war
1t has been necessary to train dogs
in a shorter period, and in many cases
this has been done with the aid Of.
another dog, who in addition to being
IN expert Red Gross worker had also.
the quality Of not being mislead by.
his apprentice. When a dog is trained
in this manner he is paired with q,
veteran and soon begins to understand
what is expected Of him. Neyerthe.
less the schooling of the animal re-
|quires much attention on the part of
the master.
The dogs are trained under a sys.
TEN in which patience and kind treat
ment are the principal elements.
Again and again the master of the
dog will take the animal to a man
who Stimulates being wounded. or who,
nowadays actually is slightly wound.
ed.
Whether or not the scent helps the
animal to find the wounded is an un-
answered question. It is believed that
such is the case, but in training the
dog this is not taken into considera-
ton. The dog is taught to, search
the field by inspecting every bush and
ditch.
The dogs are brought on the groun1
by a man from the Red Cross COM
pany, who, as a rule, has from two to
four Of them on a leash. When the
man considers the field safe for the
dogs he turns them loose with an ap.
propriate command, and then attends
to such wounded as he can find him
self.
After a while the dogs return to re-
port. The manner in which the ami.
mails do this depends upon their own
traits. So far it has been found very
difficult to keep the dog from barking
when he has found a wounded mau
and instead teach a signal that would
indicate that he had found one. This
is hardly needed, however. AS a rule
the dog which has not found a wound.
ed man returns to his master with q
sauntering gait and shows neither ex-
citement nor easerness to leave
again. His action is different when
his search has been successful. In
that case the dog generally comes
tearing across the field, circles about
his master and runs back and forth
in the direction OF where the wounded
man has been found. The Red Cross
man then follows the dog, gives tho
wounded nan first aid and makes ar
rangementsT for his removal to the
field dressing station or ambulance.
Where the ground is difficult and
the area to be searched small, or when
the lines Of the enemy are still too
near, the Red Cross man keeps one
Of his dogs on a long line and searches
the field In this manner.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS