Elephant And Labrador Dog Are Best Friends

• US Military Working Dogs (War Dogs): Labrador Retrievers in the Vietnam War
The Vietnam War is the only war in American history in which US war dogs, which were officially classified by the military as "military working dogs," were not allowed to officially return home after the war. Classified as expendable equipment, of the approximate 4,000 US K-9s deployed to the Vietnam War, it is estimated that only about 200 US war dogs survived Vietnam to be put into service at other outposts stationed overseas.
The predominate canine selected by the US Military during the Vietnam War was the German Shepherd, which was utilized in the roles of Scout Dogs, Sentry Dogs, Mine Detection Dogs, and the US Navy used Water Dogs to detect enemy under water divers in South Vietnam. The Labrador Retriever was the military's choice for their Combat Tracker Teams (CTTs). Combat Tracker Teams consisted of one Labrador and four men: the handler, an observer, a security man, and the team leader. Labradors were selected by the military for tracking because of their distinct smelling qualities, and were utilized to locate wounded US servicemen, enemy patrols, and downed allied airmen in Vietnam. The US Army Labrador Retrievers received their combat training at the British Army's Jungle Warfare School in Malaysia.
Of the over 4,000 US war dogs serving in the Vietnam War, 232 were killed in action, and 295 US servicemen deployed as "dog handlers" were killed in action. Dog handler Robert W. Hartsock was awarded the Medal of Honor. Six Labrador Retrievers were killed in action while assigned to the 62nd and 63rd US Army Combat Tracking Teams. During the course of the war the US Army lost 204 dogs, while the US Marine Corps and US Air Force lost 13 and 15 dogs, respectively.