Australian War Dogs The Story of Four-legged Diggers

Australian War Dogs introduces you to man's best friend on the battlefield—the four-legged digger. Canine troops have served alongside Australia's armed forces for decades. Valued for their loyalty, intelligence, and devotion in battle, war dogs have helped relay messages through trenches and laid telephone wire; they have searched for the wounded and detected land mines. Nigel Allsopp, author of Cry Havoc: The History of War Dogs, explores the history of all Australian military dogs throughout our history and their different roles in the past and what role they could play in the future.

Nigel Allsopp holds a master’s degree in history and teaches full time. He is a veteran himself and was awarded the RSL’s ANZAC of the Year award in 2017 for his charity work across the country. Nigel has been instrumental in ensuring Indigenous soldiers’ history is told. After conducting research into Indigenous soldiers in the Boer War, Nigel was so touched by their brave service to a nation that had often not been kind to them that he raised funds and established Australia’s first Indigenous Light Horse memorial in Logan, Queensland. Nigel has published nine non-fiction books.

Foreword 7 Why the ANZACs Should Never Be Forgotten 9 1. Introduction 11 World War I 19 World War II 23 Korea 28 Malaya 38 Vietnam 45 2. Dogs Serving the ADF 53 3. Military Canine Breeding 59 4. Dog Tails 72 5. RAAF 124 6. Naval Police Dogs 151 7. Military Police Working Dogs 154 8. Special Forces 160 9. Army Engineers 164 10. The Future of Military Working Dogs 197 11. Lest We Forget 215 Bibliography 236