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    Soldier Dogs
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    Soldier Dogs
    Unavailable
    Soldier Dogs
    Ebook333 pages4 hours

    Soldier Dogs

    By Maria Goodavage

    4/5

    ()

    Currently unavailable

    Currently unavailable

    About this ebook

    A leading reporter offers a tour of military working dogs' extraordinary training, heroic accomplishments, and the lasting impacts they have on those who work with them.

    People all over the world have been riveted by the story of Cairo, the Belgian Malinois who was a part of the Navy SEAL team that led the raid on Osama bin Laden's compound. A dog's natural intelligence, physical abilities, and pure loyalty contribute more to our military efforts than ever before. You don't have to be a dog lover to be fascinated by the idea that a dog-the cousin of that furry guy begging for scraps under your table-could be one of the heroes who helped execute the most vital and high-tech military mission of the new millennium.
    Now Maria Goodavage, editor and featured writer for one of the world's most widely read dog blogs, tells heartwarming stories of modern soldier dogs and the amazing bonds that develop between them and their handlers. Beyond tales of training, operations, retirement, and adoption into the families of fallen soldiers, Goodavage talks to leading dog-cognition experts about why dogs like nothing more than to be on a mission with a handler they trust, no matter how deadly the IEDs they are sniffing, nor how far they must parachute or rappel from aircraft into enemy territory.
    "Military working dogs live for love and praise from their handlers," says Ron Aiello, president of the United States War Dogs Association and a former marine scout dog handler. "The work is all a big game, and then they get that pet, that praise. They would do anything for their handler." This is an unprecedented window into the world of these adventurous, loving warriors.

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherPenguin Group
    Release dateMar 15, 2012
    ISBN9781101577103
    Unavailable
    Soldier Dogs
    Author

    Maria Goodavage

    Maria Goodavage is a former USA Today staff writer and the author of several popular books, including Good Nights. Her interest in sleep research started at Northwestern University, where she worked at the school's sleep laboratory and studied the science of sleep. She lives in San Francisco with her husband, daughter, and dog. The latter two no longer share the family bed.

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    Reviews for Soldier Dogs

    4/5

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    • 3/5
      Overall, I enjoyed Soldier Dogs. Maria Goodavage thoroughly researched the topic, and her love of dogs comes through clearly. Since this book is probably only going to be picked up by fellow dog-lovers, that makes sense to me. Her prose is a lot more casual than what I was expecting, considering the sometimes gruesome topic, but it ultimately made the book feel more accessible.One thing that did annoy me, though, was that the book felt a little jumbled. A person would be introduced, we'd get a few stories about them, and THEN we'd get their whole backstory. At that point, I already had a mental image of this person. The chapters are very short, which does make for a good quick read, but it also has the effect of feeling sort of disjointed. And the dense scientific part in the middle--she does her best to make it interesting, but it's pretty dry material.But as I said, I closed the book feeling overall satisfied. If you like dogs, check it out. If you are/were in the military and you like dogs, DEFINITELY check it out.
    • 3/5
      This book caught my interest from The Daily Show when they interviewed the author. I thought it had some really interesting stories and facts about war dogs, and finally these dogs are getting a little stardom with this book. I enjoyed it but it just didn't shock and awe me enough to warrant it a higher rating.
    • 5/5
      Maria Goodavage, like many people, became seriously interested in Military Working Dogs after hearing about Cairo, the dog who was part of the mission to get Osama bin Laden. She thought that surely this wouldn't be a hard subject to investigate; after all, these are dogs, not not nuclear weapons or stealth fighters.

      It turns out that this is a very challenging area to investigate, precisely because these are "just dogs" and dogs who are in many ways quite secret. In many ways, in many places, they officially don't exist. This includes in veterinarian's offices, where the normal paperwork simply does not occur. She had her work cut out for her just getting in touch with the people who could tell her about these dogs and introduce her to their handlers.

      But in the process, she met some wonderful people and dogs.

      Goodavage was already very knowledgeable about dogs, but the lives of military working dogs and their handlers are very different from anything that happens in civilian life. Many of us have very close bonds with our dogs, especially when they are for us working dogs: service dogs, farm dogs, search and rescue dogs being just a few examples.

      Handlers of military working dogs, though, depend on these dogs for their lives. Yet at the same time, they also live with the knowledge that these dogs who save their lives and the lives of other soldiers serving along side them may be killed while doing so. It's hard to beat the bond that comes from that.

      Goodavage looks at the modern history of soldier dogs, their selection; their training; the washouts who are often fantastic dogs, just not for this work; the training of their handlers; the relationships between them; the work they do; the retirement of the soldier dogs who survive their service.

      She also looks at the complete lack of any official recognition for what these dogs do and the lives they save by doing it. Legally, officially, a military work dog is not a dog soldier, but a piece of equipment, no different than a rifle.

      Overall, it's a fascinating look at the dogs and at the people who train them and work with them.

      Highly recommended.

      I bought this audiobook.
    • 3/5
      An interesting look at contemporary military dogs, including their procurement, training, relationships with handlers, and roles in combat, especially in Iraq and Afghanistan. Published for adults but a subject older teens will find of interest, too.
    • 5/5
      I listened to the audio version and fell it was very well done. I never had a dog before getting my mobility assist service dog 5 years ago. I think, certainly, for anyone who has ever had a dog, this glimpse into the role that dogs play in the military would have to be interesting. Like almost all dog books I've read - be prepared for a few tears. And of course, the reporting on some of the horrors of war. Overall I fell the book was well researched and is written with respect.
    • 4/5
      Enjoyable, good narrator. Even though the subject matter was occasionally sad or tragic, this book is not a "heavy" depressing book. The stories were interesting, if short - this book was more like a compilation of vignettes about soldiers and their dogs. It didn't get into depth on any subject (and that's too bad). The only negative was that it seems like the book had no editing - there were a couple stories that didn't even seem to belong in the book, and a couple of stories that were like "meh... not sure why that one was included". But overall I really enjoyed reading about the military working dogs and some of their experiences... and they DO deserve to get medals.
    • 4/5
      Goodavage chronicles the human-animal bond between working dog and American soldier with feeling and sympathy. She manages to get access to military personnel and training centers that few do, and this makes all the difference in her research. Although the book chapters bounce around from topic to topic, the big points are all hit: a history of military dogs, procurement, training, handler training, aftercare, and life as a MWD and handler. The text is easy to read and keeps you interested. The information is interspersed within the stories of soldiers well enough that anyone might enjoy reading without getting bogged down in the details. Personally, I was pleased with the amount of information Goodavage was able to include about working dogs while making it easy to understand for the layperson.
    • 4/5
      Although I'm a sucker for a any good dog story, I think anyone interested in the military will appreciate this well written examination of how dogs serve war efforts. The discussion of dogs as 'equipment', as they are defined by the bureaucracy of the government, versus how handlers and the public view dogs is well examined. I can pretty much guarantee that a dog book will put me into tears--but this one, thankfully, only had a few moments. I can't quite explain why, for certainly the love between the dogs and soldiers were deep in the various stories. The dogs and handlers, surprisingly, are only deployed for relatively short times before being re-assigned: different handlers to different dogs. As someone who raised guide dogs, and was told by the trainers that dogs only had two to three strong bonds in them, this was an interesting difference--the types of work of course require very different personalities of dogs.As with almost all books regarding how people work with dogs, here's another fine example of how dogs serve us in amazing ways--in this case, not only serve, but selflessly give up their lives to protect us for something as simple as a scratch behind the ears or a toss of a toy. It is about time Soldier Dogs had their story told. Thank you Maria Goodavage
    • 4/5
      I loved this book and the best "equipment" the military has in the fight against terrorist, drugs and soldier morale. The dogs deserve so much more respect than they are given along with the handlers who spend time with them. These animals love what they do, they love to protect people.
    • 5/5
      Very few non-fiction books bring me to tears, but this one did. The author chronicles the history as well as the current status of dogs in the armed services. She personalizes this with individual stories of handlers and their dogs.I was surprised that one dog was deployed 7 times over 12 years! Amazing! It was good to know that many of these dogs that are adoptable, are adopted.The book was written in a style in which each chapter could stand alone. I would recommend this for persons who have or are serving in the military as well as animal lovers. The dedication of the men and women to their dogs, and vice versa, should be commended and this book does it.