Salute the Troops

November 11 is Veteran's Day. A time to pause and think of the sacrifices that have been made for our freedoms. Often the day is spent celebrating the human contributions to our freedom, but did you know there are lots of canine veterans too?

In fact, dogs have been used in wars since ancient times. That's right, think Rome, Greece and Egyptian empires. That's pretty amazing. The U.S. military has used dogs for a long time, but it hasn't always been a happy story. Until very recently, dogs were considered military equipment and sometimes left behind (like in Vietnam) or euthanized after they got too old to work. President Bill Clinton signed a bill in 2000 that reclassified military dogs and even let them be adopted by their handlers. Now that is a 21st century celebration!

Check out these books about canines in the military.

Happy Reading!

Ms. Anderson