War dogs saved thousands of American lives during the Vietnam War, but never came home

Photo Credit: MidJourney

The Vietnam War had its share of unsung heroes, including the war dogs—courageous canines who played an essential role in the conflict. Trained as sentries, scouts, and trackers, they possessed an incredible ability to detect danger, offering vital support to their human counterparts. Their contributions are believed to have saved countless lives, reducing the American death toll by an estimated 10,000 casualties. Here are the inspiring stories of these courageous four-legged soldiers.

Not the first war dogs

American servicemen and their dogs awaiting their next assignment in a Bougainville jungle clearing, 1944. (Photo Credit: Bettmann / Getty Images)

Dogs that served in the Vietnam War continued a long tradition of using canines in combat. However, it was during World War II that the United States began officially training dogs for military roles beyond carrying messages on the battlefield. Between 1943 and 1945, the US Marine Corps trained dogs donated to the war effort to serve in the Pacific Theater, accepting all breeds. The Doberman Pinscher notably became the Marines’ official war dog.

This program proved successful, leading the US military to reestablish K9 units when the Vietnam War began. Though records prior to 1968 are somewhat unclear, around 5,000 dogs were deployed from that year until the end of the conflict, with approximately 10,000 servicemen acting as their handlers.

Unlike soldiers who completed their tours and returned home, these dogs remained in Vietnam, transferred to new handlers.

Use as tracking dogs in Vietnam

Australian servicemen with their tracking dogs, 1967. (Photo Credit: Bryan Campbell / Australian War Memorial / Wikimedia Commons / Public Domain)

One of the dog breeds used in Vietnam was the Labrador Retriever, primarily serving as trackers. Their training enabled them to alert handlers to the presence of snipers, tripwires and weapons caches. Rick Claggett, a Vietnam War veteran, explained that they were highly skilled at following blood trails. When troops needed to locate an injured enemy or missing personnel, Lab teams— made up of the dog, its handler, a cover man, the team leader, and a visual tracker—were called in.

Labradors were chosen over other tracking dogs, such as Beagles and Bloodhounds, because they were much quieter than those breeds.

The Australians created their own K9 units comprised of 11 shelter dogs adopted from Sydney. Named after Roman emperors, these dogs were expected to serve in Vietnam for three years. While they occasionally worked alongside U.S. troops, it was German Shepherds that made up the majority of the Australian war dogs.

Sentry and scouting duties

Muzzled sentry dogs and their handlers returning to their kennels and barracks after patrolling the perimeter of the Marble Mountain supply and communications center outpost in Đà Nẵng, 1969. (Photo Credit: R.A. Elder / Hulton Archive / Getty Images)

In Vietnam, war dogs showcased extraordinary adaptability, performing a wide range of tasks including sentry duty, scouting, mining, tunneling, and tracking. Rick Claggett worked alongside Big Boy, one of these skilled canine scouts, and shared that their primary role was to lead patrols through fields. The dogs were specifically trained to detect booby traps and ambushes through scent, making their position as the lead in such missions particularly perilous. As Claggett pointed out, this duty had the third-highest mortality rate in the war.

Sentry dogs were assigned to patrol the perimeters of U.S. outposts, serving as the first line of defense against enemy forces. German Shepherds were also used for water patrols, where they could detect enemy soldiers hiding beneath the water, poised to strike at amphibious craft. The success of these highly trained teams made them prime targets of Viet Cong guerrillas, who placed bounties on both the dogs and their handlers, even attacking their kennels in an effort to claim the reward.

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Nemo A534

Nemo A534 and Capt. Robert Sullivan during a demonstration in Denver, Colorado, 1967. (Photo Credit: The Denver Post / Getty Images)

The bonds forged between these partners were truly remarkable. There are many stories of this, with perhaps none more famous than that of Nemo A534 and his handler, Capt. Robert Throneburg.

On December 4, 1966, while stationed at Tan Son Nhut Air Base, the Viet Cong attacked. During their patrol, Nemo alerted Throneburg to a group hidden nearby. The pair attacked, killing two enemy fighters, but were soon injured themselves. Nemo was shot under his right eye, with the bullet exiting through his mouth, while Throneburg was shot through his left shoulder twice.

Despite being seriously injured, the dog crawled onto his handler’s body, where he waited until medics could arrive – he wouldn’t let anyone else near him. Throneburg received the Bronze Star with V and two Purple Hearts, while Nemo was retired and sent back to the United States, where he served as a recruiting dog until his death.

Man’s best friend

Airman restraining a German Shepherd undergoing sentry training at Lackland Air Force Base, Texas, 1965. (Photo Credit: Pix / Michael Ochs Archives / Getty Images)

These dog/handler teams were invaluable to the war effort in Vietnam. They were credited with saving the lives of around 10,000 servicemen, thanks to their various roles in the conflict. James Mulligan handled scout dog Rickey, who “never walked our patrol into an ambush or any booby traps. He alerted on 45 ambushes, five in one day.”

While these actions were appreciated by the men that served alongside them, these dogs weren’t made a priority when the war came to an end. Of the roughly 5,000 that served, around 232 were killed in action (KIA) and another 200 were assigned to posts outside of the US. The remainder were either left in the hands of the Vietnamese or abandoned. At least 2,000 were simply euthanized.

The US government viewed them as “equipment” and didn’t want to fund their trips home. Having built such strong bonds, many soldiers wanted to bring their comrades back to the US with them, but were still told no, despite repeated appeals to Congress and the press.

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The service performed by these canines never went forgotten, and there are countless interviews with veteran handlers who still remember their partnerships fondly. In 2019, they were publicly remembered when the Vietnam War Dog Team Memorial was unveiled at Motts Military Museum, Inc. in Ohio.

Rosemary Giles: Rosemary Giles is a history content writer with Hive Media. She received both her bachelor of arts degree in history, and her master of arts degree in history from Western University. Her research focused on military, environmental, and Canadian history with a specific focus on the Second World War. As a student, she worked in a variety of research positions, including as an archivist. She also worked as a teaching assistant in the History Department. Since completing her degrees, she has decided to take a step back from academia to focus her career on writing and sharing history in a more accessible way. With a passion for historical learning and historical education, her writing interests include social history, and war history, especially researching obscure facts about the Second World War. In her spare time, Rosemary enjoys spending time with her partner, her cats, and her horse, or sitting down to read a good book.
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