12 of the Bravest Dogs in History

Conan, the military hero

When we imagine our country’s greatest heroes, we often think of our brave service members. But in a 2019 military operation that resulted in the takedown of a dangerous ISIS leader, it was a military dog, Conan, who deserves much of our praise. During the operation with U.S. special forces in Syria, Conan chased ISIS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi down a dead-end tunnel. Conan was injured but recovered and returned to the field. After the raid, one of the bravest dogs in history was lauded with high honors and even got to visit the White House!

Bonn-Oberkassel dog, the first best friend

In 1914, German workers discovered a 14,000-year-old grave in which a man, woman and dog were buried together. Called the Bonn-Oberkassel dog, the pup is the earliest known example of a dog being buried alongside humans. Not only that, but scientists also discovered that the dog suffered from canine distemper, a fatal disease that is not survivable past a few weeks without interventional care, according to study author Luc Janssens, a veterinarian and doctoral student of archaeology at Leiden University in the Netherlands. But this dog lived a further eight weeks, suggesting that the Bonn-Oberkassel dog was loved, cared for and buried as a member of the community.

We don’t know the brave deeds this dog performed during its life, but scientists believe the evidence suggests that even thousands of years ago, dogs played an important role in human life—to the extent that these particular humans shared their own burial vault with their beloved canine friend.

The St. Bernards of Switzerland

Monks living in the dangerous St. Bernard Pass, which is a route through the Alps between Italy and Switzerland, long kept dogs to help them rescue people after snowstorms. Since the early 1700s, about 2,000 people, including children and even Napoleon’s lost soldiers, have been rescued by calm, steady St. Bernards, some of the bravest dogs in history. According to Smithsonian Magazine, the heroic dogs had an uncanny sense of direction and resistance to cold, but over time, they were phased out in favor of helicopters. To this day, the monastery houses the Great St. Bernard Hospice, which has provided shelter for weary travelers (and dogs) for more than a thousand years.

Barry of Switzerland

One specific St. Bernard from Switzerland has earned his place as one of the bravest dogs in history due to his many acts of heroism. That’s Barry, who lived in the St. Bernard Pass between 1800 to 1812. During his lifetime, he saved the lives of more than 40 people. He’s memorialized at the Natural History Museum in Berne, Switzerland, where his body remains today.

Sergeant Stubby, World War I hero

In 1917, a stray dog wandered onto the Yale University campus, where members of the military were in training to be sent abroad to fight in World War I. The men named the dog Stubby, and he quickly became their beloved mascot. Eventually, they smuggled Stubby to the front lines in France, where he warned men of poison gas attacks and located wounded soldiers. Stubby earned the rank of sergeant for attacking a German spy, according to History.com.

Swansea Jack, self-appointed Scottish lifeguard

There are certain amusing quirks about dogs that make us love them more, and the fact that Swansea Jack took it upon himself to be a lifeguard is a great example. A flat-coated retriever who was born in 1930, Jack lived near the docks of Swansea, Scotland. Whenever there were cries for help from the water, Jack would always respond. He made his first rescue in 1931, saving a 12-year-old boy. A few weeks later, he rescued another swimmer—and made the local paper. According to the Swansea Museum, Jack may have saved as many as 27 people from drowning during his short life. Sadly, this good boy died in 1937 after eating rat poison, but he has been memorialized as the “Dog of the Century” on Swansea’s Promenade.

Smoky, the World War II Yorkie

In 1944, an American soldier in the New Guinea jungle discovered a stray Yorkshire terrier. Smoky, as she was named by the soldier, became the soldier’s loyal partner and something of a World War II mascot. HuffPost reports that she spent 18 months in combat in New Guinea and the Philippines. She saved many lives by warning soldiers of incoming fire, helped string communication wires between outposts and is considered one of the world’s first therapy dogs.

Laika, the space dog

Laika was the first dog to orbit the Earth. Originally a stray from Moscow, she was sent into space by the fledgling Soviet space program. Sadly, this was a suicide mission for Laika, Time reports. She was given only one meal and seven days’ worth of oxygen, and it was presumed to be a one-way trip. For decades, the Soviets insisted that she died a humane death, but in 2002, it was revealed that Laika died from hyperthermia (overheating) hours into her flight.

Midnight, a lifeline after Hurricane Sandy

Born in Louisiana, Midnight survived Hurricane Katrina and was brought north as a refugee. Adopted by the superintendent of a Greenwich Street building in New York City, Midnight became a lifeline during another hurricane, Sandy. According to the New York Times, Midnight was one of the links in a multi-person (and dog) “bucket brigade” that carried water to people who were marooned in an apartment building across the street. This act of service—and surviving two hurricanes!—makes her one of the bravest dogs in history and one of the kindest.

Nemo, the hero dog of the Vietnam War

Nemo was a German shepherd born in 1962, and by the time he was 2, this smart pooch was already a member of the U.S. Air Force. In 1966, he and his human handler were shipped off to serve in South Vietnam during the Vietnam War. One night, Nemo alerted his human to the presence of enemy soldiers nearby before being shot by enemy fire. Though he lost an eye, he survived and continued fighting, hurling his body at enemy soldiers and eventually crawling on top of his human to protect him from further harm. In 1967, he returned to the United States as the first sentry dog officially retired from active service.

The canine heroes of 9/11

More than 300 dogs joined thousands of people who took part in the search-and-rescue efforts at Ground Zero after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks. According to the National September 11 Memorial & Museum, these hero dogs include:

• Riley, a golden retriever with FEMA’s Pennsylvania Task Force 1.
• Apollo, a German shepherd with the New York Police Department’s K-9 unit who arrived just 15 minutes after the World Trade Center towers collapsed.
• Bretagne, a golden retriever who worked at Ground Zero 12 hours a day for two straight weeks. Bretagne was the last surviving 9/11 rescue dog, and firefighters in Texas lined the sidewalk outside the animal hospital when she was euthanized due to old age in 2016.

Jake, who made the world a better place

Jake was an injured stray pup when he was adopted by a member of a Utah search and rescue team. The black lab healed and became a world-class rescue dog, assisting in many rescue and recovery missions, including after the Sept. 11 attacks, when he worked at Ground Zero for 17 days. A few years after that, he assisted with the Hurricane Katrina and Hurricane Rita rescue missions. Later in life, he worked as a therapy dog in Utah.

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Sources:

• NPR: “Conan, The Military Dog Who Helped Kill ISIS Leader, Honored At White House”
• LiveScience: “Humans Cared for Sick Puppies Long Ago, Ancient Burial Shows”
• Time: “The Sad Story of Laika, the First Dog Launched Into Orbit”
• Pays du St-Bernard: “The Great St. Bernard Pass”
• Swansea Museum: “Swansea Jack”
• HuffPost: “Smoky The Yorkshire Terrier Was Probably The Cutest Service Member In WWII”
• History: “5 of History’s Most Dedicated Dogs”
• The New York Times: “Bottled Water Delivery! (Pardon the Slobber)”
• National September 11 Memorial & Museum: “Rescue & Recovery at 20: The Four-Legged Heroes”
• U.S. War Dogs Heritage Museum: “Nemo, He Was One of a Kind”
• CNN: “Last known 9/11 search and rescue dog laid to rest”
• NPR: “Rescue Dog Jake Dies”