Military Dogs No More
An Animal Rights Article from All-Creatures.org

FROM

Alex Moore
November 2015

Military dog use has risen immensely over the past few years and the number of innocent dog's lives being lost is at an all time high because of it. The sad part is that these dogs are being forced to serve and they don’t even know why or what for. They could be killed at any minute, yet they are used completely for our benefit and they receive nothing from it but possible death for the sake of our military.

In World War II, dogs were used as anti-tank weapons. They were strapped with bombs and trained to run towards enemy tanks; you can guess how that ended. While laws now prevent this use of dogs in warfare, there are still many cruel and unfair ways in which these dogs are being used. We should be working to stop the use of these poor animals as weaponry in warfare.

Our society and media has twisted the way people view the use of dogs in the military. While they make it clear that the use of dogs in warfare is beneficial to service, they avoid presenting proper justification. It isn’t okay to take advantage of dogs by forcing them into service where they are risking their lives daily. The sad part is that these dogs are being forced to serve and they don’t even know why or what for. They could be killed at any minute, yet they are used completely for our benefit and they receive nothing from it but possible death for the sake of our military. The main reason why our military uses dogs for service is because of the efficiency that comes from it. Providing for dogs is much cheaper than providing for humans; and, risking the life of a dog to check for bombs is much more convenient than using a human to do so.

Although we have artificial intelligence present to carry out the tasks that dogs perform, we do not take advantage of this technology because it is not as efficient as using a dog to do so. This shows us that our military is okay with risking the lives of innocent animals to perform dangerous tasks such as sniffing out IEDs instead of using state of the art military intelligence because we don’t want to spend the money.

The United States Defense Department classifies military working dogs as “equipment”, yes, you read that right. They are classified as “surplus equipment” by our military, which means they are one hundred percent disposable at any given time. This explains why in the Vietnam War, of the 49,000 dogs deployed, 2,700 dogs were turned over to the South Vietnamese army, and 1,600 were euthanized.

However, there has been improvement in the abandonment of war dogs since then. In 2000, President Bill Clinton signed “Robby’s Law.” This law is accredited to a military dog named Robby and the relentless pursuit of his adoption from his handler after he finished serving. Sadly, Robby was eventually euthanized. But Robby’s death would implement an everlasting change in the lives of all military dogs. Euthanizing Robby brought about protests that demanded military dogs be adopted after their service, instead of being put down. This law officially passed the approval that dogs may be adopted by former handlers, law enforcements agencies and civilians.

However, this did not completely solve the problem. To this day, military dogs are still classified as “equipment” and if they are retired on an overseas military base, the military will not provide them with transportation back home. That, to me, is completely absurd. These dogs play a major role in our military, yet we do not have the moral decency to provide a way of transportation for them to get back into the United States. This needs to change; either we need our government to pass a new set of laws that will ensure these dogs’ safety and protection, or we should just get rid of military dogs all together.

I’m sure you all know about the recent terror attacks that took place in Paris. Well, humans were not the only ones affected by this tragedy. A seven-year-old police dog named Diesel was killed during a police raid that occurred in Paris. While there is no doubt that the heroic acts of this dog will be remembered by many people for years to come, it shouldn’t have to be. Diesel shouldn’t have been forced into this situation to begin with. Because of her doing her “job,” she was killed. The United States government needs to make a change in the way that we value and treat our animals. These innocent animals do not deserve to live like this any longer.

I will conclude with this quote from the great philosopher Jeremy Bentham, the question is not, ‘Can they reason?’ nor, ‘Can they talk?’ but ‘Can they suffer?’

Works Cited:

  • "About Military Working Dog Adoptions." Pets For Patriots Blog. N.p., n.d. Web. 22 Nov.2015.
  • Bentham, Jeremy. The Principles of Morals and Legislation. Buffalo, NY: Prometheus, 1988.Print.
  • "Dogs in Military Action." AND Society. N.p., n.d. Web. 22 Nov. 2015.
  • "When a Dog Isn't a Dog." CNN Security Clearance RSS. N.p., n.d. Web. 22 Nov. 2015.

Return to Animal Rights Articles