Saturday, March 24, 2007

Four Legged Military Hero


Stubby was originally a stray pit bull dog that became the mascot of the 102nd Infantry during WWI. He was smuggled overseas and aided the soldiers by detecting gas attacks, lifting troop morale and even finding and holding onto a German spy until the troops could capture him.

He was eventually smuggled back to the United States where he became a lifetime member of the American Legion, Red Cross and YMCA and was highly decorated. He met three American Presidents: Wilson, Harding and Coolidge. He died in 1926 and today, his body can be seen on display at the Smithsonian Museum.

Sources: DigitalDog, CT Military Department, HistoryWired

2 comments:

Chicobo said...

Which Smithsonian Museum might I find this heroic pup? I've been to some of them before, but that was a few years ago, I hardly remember my time there n_n;

Susan (Ayame) said...

I think he is currently on loan to the state of CT. It's kind of weird how they can do that with famous animals. I've seen the original Balto on display in Cleveland a few times. ;)