Four-Legged War Hero Gets His Due Honors
Thursday, Nov 12, 2009 | Updated 12:30 PM EST
Connecticut Military Department
Stubby, the war hero dog, collects his medals.
Stubby came from humble beginnings, roaming the streets of New Haven, until Pvt. J. Robert Conroy took him in and the four-legged vagabond proved to be one of wartime soldiers' best four-legged friends.
Stubby, a brindle puppy aptly named for his short tail, patrolled the trenches during World War I and warned soldiers when artillery posed a threat, the New Haven Register reports. He was also able to detect impending gas attacks and to comfort soldiers as they were dying in the field.
The bull terrier became the mascot of the 102nd Infantry, 26th Yankee Division in the early 1900s, according to the Smithsonian, and was gassed, wounded by shrapnel and went after the enemy, using his teeth as a weapon, according to the Smithsonian. He was even promoted to sergeant for his fortitude.
Stubby was amazing pet soldier, learning the bugle calls, the drills and "even a modified dog salute as he put his right paw on his right eyebrow when a salute was executed by his fellow soldiers," according to the Smithsonian.
The canine war hero, who died in 1926, will soon be honored on the walls of the West Haven military museum. A painting Charles Ayer Whipple made in 1926 will be on display when the museum opens on Memorial Day 2010, the Register reports.
“Look at the lives he saved, and the things he did to save those lives,” Korean War veteran Frank Carrano told the Register. “The outcomes of wars past is the freedom that we still enjoy today,” Carrano said.
This is at least the second tribute to Stubby. A statue in his likeliness is on display at the National Museum of American History.
Posted Thursday, Nov 12, 2009 - 12:13 PM EST
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