#Sgt stubby gas mask how to

“My guess is given the acuity of a dog’s hearing, the sound of a gas shell being loaded for launching was different than the sound of an artillery shell and the dog learned to decipher the distinction between that,” Bausum says. Overseas, Stubby developed his ability to give advance warning of gas attacks, but exactly how he did this is unclear. When the Yankee Division was deployed to France, Conroy smuggled Stubby along with him. He marched with the soldiers and even learned to salute high-ranking officers by raising his paw to his forehead. But to her surprise, the heart of Stubby’s tale was true, including its most fantastic elements.Īfter wandering into camp in New Haven, Stubby, whose heritage is uncertain but may have been most closely related to Boston terriers, became the division’s mascot. For instance, he never received the rank of “sergeant,” as is frequently stated on the internet. “Frankly, the material presented on the internet was so fanciful, I couldn’t believe it was true,” she says.Īs she dug into Stubby’s history with a healthy dose of skepticism, she found some misconceptions. soldiers, but she had her doubts about his wartime record.

Slowly, the stout dog with wide, dark eyes began to charm Bausum like he had so many U.S. Bausum, who lives in southern Wisconsin, and is “not a dog person,” says she was doing photo research for another project when she saw an image of Stubby online. presidents after the war.Īnn Bausum, author of two books about Stubby, Sergeant Stubby (for adults) and Stubby The War Dog (for children), first came across the legendary Connecticut canine by accident. He searched for wounded soldiers between the trenches in “no man’s land,” where he was able to discern enemy from allied fallen, caught a German soldier who had snuck over to the Allied side, and was even wounded in the conflict but survived to bark another day, meeting three U.S.

#Sgt stubby gas mask how to

Upon discovery by Conroy's commanding officer, Stubby saluted him as he had been trained to in camp, and the commanding officer allowed the dog to stay on board.During his “service,” Stubby learned how to give members of the Yankee Division advance notice of gas attacks. As they were getting off the ship in France, he hid Stubby under his overcoat without detection. When it came time for the outfit to ship out, Conroy hid Stubby on board the troop ship S.S. He hung around as the men drilled and one soldier in particular, Corporal James Robert Conroy (1892-1987), developed a fondness for him. Stubby was found wandering the grounds of the Yale University campus in New Haven, Connecticut in July 1917, while members of the 102nd Infantry were training. The brindle-patterned pup probably owed at least some of his parentage to the evolving family of Boston Terriers, a breed so new that even its name was in flux: Boston Round Heads, American.and Boston Bull Terriers. Stubby was described in news stories as a Boston Terrier or 'American bull terrier,' a mutt, and a dog of 'uncertain breed.' Stubby has been called the most decorated war dog of WWI and the only dog to be nominated for rank and then promoted to sergeant through combat. He even caught a German soldier by grabbing him by the seat of his pants and holding him there until American soldiers found him. Stubby learned to warn his unit of gas attacks, located wounded soldiers, and could hear incoming artillery shells long before the rest of the unit.

Smuggled aboard the USS Minnesota, he served with the 102nd Infantry, 26th (Yankee) Division in the trenches in France for 18 months, participated in 4 offensives, and 17 battles. Sergeant Stubby was the most decorated war dog of World War I and the only dog to be promoted to sergeant.