Dogs In The War

Let me be the first to say that there were no known dog confederates. I won't believe it and refuse to look at any proof. Sure, there were probably some dogs in the ANV but they had been brought by their masters and weren't carried on the official rosters.

They probably were married to some
 
It was a nickname of sorts, actually short for Sallie Ann Jarrett, her full name. She was named for two people, the 11th Pennsylvania's original commanding officer, Colonel Phaon Jarrett, and a young lady of West Chester, Pennsylvania, where the regiment was first mustered into service at Camp Wayne. Patriotic local citizens often visited the camp, enjoying the regiments' dress parades and bringing gifts for the soldiers. Sallie the dog was one of these gifts, given to Sergeant William Terry of the 11th's Company I by a local gentleman. Here is a link to donna's thread about Sallie, which you may enjoy:
http://civilwartalk.com/threads/sallie-the-faithful-mascot-of-the-11th-pennsylvania-volunteer-infantry.23931/

I know. I was just exercising some of my wise guy-ness. My phone doesn't allow the emoticons on occasion so it doesn't come across. :wink: (now I'm on the laptop).

R
 
I've got three unit histories and none of them mention Stonewall. Can you direct me to a source ? Do you know which company he was "assigned" to ? I very much like the notion of a dog in the ranks.

Only have the dogs names and their units from James Robertson's book " The Untold Civil War. "
I've got three unit histories and none of them mention Stonewall. Can you direct me to a source ? Do you know which company he was "assigned" to ? I very much like the notion of a dog in the ranks.

I've got three unit histories and none of them mention Stonewall. Can you direct me to a source ? Do you know which company he was "assigned" to ? I very much like the notion of a dog in the ranks.

Just found this: http://civilwartalk.com/threads/a-dog-named-stonewall.5034/
 
Thanks a bunch Sergeant Major. I'm going to have to do some research now. The post your referenced said Stonewall was mentioned in unit histories but I sure don't remember seeing such and I've got all their are (I think). I'll have to comb through and check I suppose and put Google to work. I've always been fond of Jack Russels; a spirited breed.
 
Thanks a bunch Sergeant Major. I'm going to have to do some research now. The post your referenced said Stonewall was mentioned in unit histories but I sure don't remember seeing such and I've got all their are (I think). I'll have to comb through and check I suppose and put Google to work. I've always been fond of Jack Russels; a spirited breed.
Marilyn W. Seguin writes of Stonewall in her book "Dogs of War and Stories of Other Beasts of Battle in the Civil War." She cites as a source an article titled "Faithful Friends" by Ernest L. Abel in the March/April 1995 edition of Civil War Times Illustrated. Hope this helps!
 
Marilyn W. Seguin writes of Stonewall in her book "Dogs of War and Stories of Other Beasts of Battle in the Civil War." She cites as a source an article titled "Faithful Friends" by Ernest L. Abel in the March/April 1995 edition of Civil War Times Illustrated. Hope this helps!

Thanks Pvt. Loyalty ! That is most helpful. My good friend the local reference librarian will get to strut her stuff once again and find me copies.
 
I was just looking at this page today and found it was already posted in here. I really enjoyed the article. I had always wondered about using dogs during the war. Could you imagine using dogs as a charging force? Imagine 2k dogs charging in front of Picketts men at Gettysburg.
I had read somewhere that Andersonville had huge guard dogs, some 200 pounds and almost 7 feet long. Reminds me of those huge dogs the Russians use in their prisons today. They are enormous. Caucasion Ovcharka.





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That is exactly what the Hittites did with the breed. They have been around forever.
 
I dont think I have seen this breed before, any one know why the dogs from Europe are so BIG!!! what is the other big ones is it an Irish wolf hounds???? wow they are really big!!!
The region of the world where the Ovcharka and their associated spin off cousins hail from is inhospitable, cold with big mean predators. They are a land race breed, with about 10 different types, with a range from Siberia to Eastern Europe and are the progenitors of all the Molosser (Mastiff type) breeds. They were bred to defend attacks from Wolves, Snow Leopards and Bear. The Great Pyr, which many Americans are familiar which is one of the Spanish versions of the breed, slightly smaller and a bit more biddable. The dogs were bred to withstand temperatures from -50'-130', survive on little to no food, require virtually no vet care, survive attacks which would kill other breeds and guard their charges like the T-1000 Terminator. The Caucasian (pictured before) the Central and the South Russian are definitely dogs you do not want to meet in a dark alley. To top it all off, they possess excellent night vision, a rarity in canines.
 
The Ovcharka is a ridiculously amazing looking dog, whoa- would have to guess it would not have fared well in the south, or anywhere in our country where summers are an issue? Our 2 are half Siberian Husky ( German Shephard ) , have that sheep's wool undercoat . We have to clip them or they tend to get heat stroke, it's just too much for the poor guys. We still spend hot days wetting them down.

Have a big soft spot for Sallie, always leave a biscuit or pennies- grgrgruncle in the 11th killed at Gettysburg, gives you chills sometimes visiting Sallie on the memorial. Makes them all so close- they all must have known her, spent time fussing over their dog. Love these stories, thanks for the thread.
 
The region of the world where the Ovcharka and their associated spin off cousins hail from is inhospitable, cold with big mean predators. They are a land race breed, with about 10 different types, with a range from Siberia to Eastern Europe and are the progenitors of all the Molosser (Mastiff type) breeds. They were bred to defend attacks from Wolves, Snow Leopards and Bear. The Great Pyr, which many Americans are familiar which is one of the Spanish versions of the breed, slightly smaller and a bit more biddable. The dogs were bred to withstand temperatures from -50'-130', survive on little to no food, require virtually no vet care, survive attacks which would kill other breeds and guard their charges like the T-1000 Terminator. The Caucasian (pictured before) the Central and the South Russian are definitely dogs you do not want to meet in a dark alley. To top it all off, they possess excellent night vision, a rarity in canines.
WOW !!! I did not know any of this !!! what amazing facts, thanks for sharing that!!
 
I had the pleasure to work with a four legged partner for years. Without going into detail he and I were on scene during an officer involved shooting. Once the incident was over and the scene secure the adrenaline starts to wear off. The k-9 took on another role at that time. He provided a service as great or greater then the one he was trained to provide. He provided emotional support to the officers involved, including myself, as they debriefed and thought about the events that transpired. The calming and supportive effect was profound. I have no doubt that these ACW dogs provided a similar service.
 
I had the pleasure to work with a four legged partner for years. Without going into detail he and I were on scene during an officer involved shooting. Once the incident was over and the scene secure the adrenaline starts to wear off. The k-9 took on another role at that time. He provided a service as great or greater then the one he was trained to provide. He provided emotional support to the officers involved, including myself, as they debriefed and thought about the events that transpired. The calming and supportive effect was profound. I have no doubt that these ACW dogs provided a similar service.

My Dad's brother just told me not long ago he really got emotional- had no idea there's a web site listing K-9 Corp dog names from Vietnam. He'd done 2 tours there, NEVER talks about it- just never so it was shocking to me that he even brought it up. I really do just adore my uncle, very much- as a small child he was IT, too. We had photos of he and his dogs around the house- I was too little to understand exactly what he did over there, he was just my uncle with the great dog, in a uniform. Remember going to the airport, one of his tours, coming home and these terrible people ( in my head ) yelling at him, throwing things at the soldiers, pretty well sealed my horror of hippies, let me tell you. SO, so upsetting to a little girl- that was my uncle.

Could not figure out where his nice doggie was, though, and why we could not pet him! :smile:
 
Always enjoy the posts about the dogs of the war.

the-cats-of-war-by-danny-shanahan.jpg
 
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