This stimulus for this book came when Anthony Hill first heard the true story of Horrie the Wog Dog. As he explains in his background notes, he then became aware of a wealth of material stored at the Australian War Memorial - stuffed dogs, carrier pidgeons, and a horse's head just for example - that led him to consider some of Australia's forgotten animal heroes.
Accounts of animals in war do exist. They have been used throughout history, but this is an attempt to capture the stories of animals in connection with the Australian armed forces, not only in war but in peacetime as well.
Here are twenty-one fascinating stories about the forgotten heroes of war: animals who have served beside Australian forces. These are all animals that dazzle with their courage and loyalty - or sometimes just by being lovable. Whether it's a rooster guarding his battalion during the First World War or a mine-detecting dolphin in present-day Iraq, they make the difficult lives of soldiers so much more bearable.
Contents:
Map
Imperial to Metric Conversions
Introductions
World War I
- Driver
- Murphy
- Zep
- Last Race
- Bullet, Track and Nell
- Billy Bantam
- Roff
- Sandy
World War II
- Horrie
- Pidgeon VC
- Gunner
- Redland and Company - Judy Korea and Vietnam - The Dawn Dog
- Stan’s Bad Habit
- Cassius
Recent Conflicts
- Sergeant Courage Goes AWOL
- Simpson
- Dolphin Patrol
- Snappa Gets Promoted
- Boris
Endnotes
Chapter Notes
Acknowledgements
References and Further Reading
Glossary
Glossary of Acronyms
Index
