Kuga (dog)

Last updated

Kuga (2007-2012) was a male Belgian Malinois military dog serving with the Australian Army. In 2011, Kuga was shot five times while grasping an insurgent fighter with his mouth, while on patrol in Khas Urozgan District, Afghanistan. Kuga died in 2012 of complications from the wounds despite veterinary treatment. In 2018, Kuga was awarded the Dickin Medal [1] considered the Victoria Cross for animals. [2]

Contents

Early life

Kuga was born on 23 April 2007, and began training with the Australian Special Air Service Regiment (SASR) in January 2008, aged eight months.

Kuga was assigned to his handler (who can not be named for security reasons) in April 2009, and in June 2010 they deployed to Afghanistan for their first tour. [1]

Award situation

On 26 August 2011, during the pair's second tour, a SASR patrol was airlifted by helicopter into Khas Urozgan District in central Afghanistan, with a mission to locate a high value Taliban. Unknown to the patrol was that an ambush had been established by the Taliban fighters.

Kuga's handler, ranked Sergeant, let Kuga off-lead to patrol ahead and scout. Kuga went to the left and ahead, then down a creek bank. While Kuga was swimming across the creek, the Taliban engaged him with automatic gun fire. The handler observed rounds hitting the water around the dog, which continued to the other side of the creek. Kuga left the water and charged at the shooter, grasping onto him. The shooter then targeted Kuga directly with his AK-47 rifle, hitting him with at least one round. Kuga released his grip on the Taliban fighter who then escaped but not before targeting the dog again, ultimately hitting him five times: twice in the ear, once in the toe, once in the cheek (which exited through the neck) and once in the chest, which exited the shoulder and broke his upper-left leg. Kuga also received shrapnel wounds to his lower spine. [1]

The Australian patrol had been well alerted to the ambush and began to engage the insurgents. The handler observed Kuga lying on the ground injured, near the bank of the stream. The handler called Kuga, who responded by slowly crawling to and entering the water and swimming over to rejoin the handler. The handler provided immediate first aid, and an emergency medical evacuation was called for. [1]

Aftermath

Kuga was evacuated and then treated by veterinary staff in Afghanistan, Germany and Australia, with the aim of rehabilitating him. However, the stress and injuries were too much, and he died on 24 July 2012. Kuga's death is officially recorded as ‘Died of Wounds’. [1]

On 26 October 2018, Kuga was posthumously awarded the 71st Dickin Medal for bravery by the People's Dispensary for Sick Animals (PDSA). The medal was received on Kuga's behalf by a Victoria Cross recipient, Mark Donaldson VC, who was also a Special forces dog handler, along with another military dog, Odin. A spokesperson for the PDSA said, "The reason he got the Dickin Medal was he just was so courageous. He saved the lives, without doubt I think, of that patrol.” Donaldson said, "I personally am of the opinion that he saved lives that day. … The ambush would not have been sprung early enough so they would have stumbled into that killing zone. … If you take Kuga out of the equation … with reasonable doubt they wouldn't have known the enemy was there." Kuga's handler said, "I'm pretty proud of what Kuga did that day. He's the one who chose to go forward, he's the one who chose to take bullets for both me and my mates. Ultimately that enabled me to come home to my family." [2]

Related Research Articles

Dickin Medal Award

The PDSA Dickin Medal was instituted in 1943 in the United Kingdom by Maria Dickin to honour the work of animals in World War II. It is a bronze medallion, bearing the words "For Gallantry" and "We Also Serve" within a laurel wreath, carried on a ribbon of striped green, dark brown, and pale blue. It is awarded to animals that have displayed "conspicuous gallantry or devotion to duty while serving or associated with any branch of the Armed Forces or Civil Defence Units". The award is commonly referred to as "the animals' Victoria Cross".

Peoples Dispensary for Sick Animals Veterinary charity in the United Kingdom

The People's Dispensary for Sick Animals (PDSA) is a veterinary charity in the United Kingdom. It was founded in 1917 by Maria Dickin to provide care for sick and injured animals of the poor. It is the UK's leading veterinary charity, carrying out more than one million free veterinary consultations a year, and was until 2009 the largest private employer of fully qualified veterinary surgeons and veterinary nurses in the UK; only those living within the PDSA's catchment areas can use their services.

Chips (dog)

Chips (1940–1946) was a trained sentry dog for United States Army, and reputedly the most decorated war dog from World War II. Chips was a German Shepherd-Collie-Husky mix owned by Edward J. Wren of Pleasantville, New York.

Sadie,, a black Labrador Retriever, is a recipient of the Dickin Medal, the animal equivalent of the Victoria Cross. She was awarded for detecting an explosive device outside the United Nations headquarters in Kabul in November 2005, and was awarded by the Princess Alexandra on 6 February 2007. Her handler at the time of the action which resulted in the award was Lance Corporal Karen Yardley.

Mark Donaldson Recipient of the Victoria Cross

Mark Gregor Strang Donaldson, is an Australian soldier and a recipient of the Victoria Cross for Australia, the highest award in the Australian honours system. Then Trooper Donaldson was a member of the Special Air Service Regiment (SASR) when he exposed himself to enemy fire to protect injured troops and then rescued an interpreter under heavy enemy fire in the Battle of Khaz Oruzgan during Operation Slipper, the Australian contribution to the War in Afghanistan. He was presented with the decoration by the Governor-General of Australia, Quentin Bryce, in a ceremony in Canberra on 16 January 2009. On 25 January 2010, Donaldson was named the 2010 Young Australian of the Year. He was promoted to corporal in June 2010.

Sam (army dog) Army dog

Sam was an army dog who served with the Royal Army Veterinary Corps Dog Unit. While serving in Bosnia and Herzegovina in the 1990s, Sam helped to apprehend an armed man and also to hold back an armed mob besieging a compound where Serbs were taking refuge. He received the Dickin Medal, the animals' equivalent of the Victoria Cross, in 2003 for these acts of bravery.

Gander was a Newfoundland dog posthumously awarded the Dickin Medal, the "animals' Victoria Cross", in 2000 for his deeds in World War II, the first such award in over 50 years.

Sarbi

Sarbi was an Australian special forces explosives detection dog that spent almost 14 months missing in action (MIA) in Afghanistan having disappeared during an ambush on 2 September 2008. Sarbi was later rediscovered by an American soldier, and was reunited with Australian forces pending repatriation to Australia. Her name is sometimes spelled 'Sabi'.

Treo was a black Labrador Retriever-English Springer Spaniel crossbreed and a retired Arms and Explosives Search dog with the Royal Army Veterinary Corps. He was awarded the Dickin Medal in February 2010. The military nominated Treo for the award in recognition of his help uncovering a number of improvised explosive devices (IED) during his time serving in Helmand Province, an insurgency hot spot, in 2008. Treo was the medal's 63rd recipient.

Rob (dog)

Rob was a Collie dog who in February 1945 was awarded the Dickin Medal, considered to be the animals' Victoria Cross. He was alleged to have made over 20 parachute descents during the North African Campaign, serving with the SAS. However, in 2006, his actions were revealed as being a possible hoax perpetrated by members of his regiment in order to prevent Rob leaving after his original owners requested his return.

Buster, an English Springer Spaniel, was a military detection dog who was active during the Iraq War. Because of his actions in discovering a hidden weapons cache, the dog was credited with saving service personnel from insurgents operating in the southern Iraqi town of Safwan. He was awarded the Dickin Medal, referred to as being the animals' Victoria Cross.

Peter (1941–1952) was a collie dog who in 1945 was awarded the Dickin Medal, considered to be the Victoria Cross for animals. During the later stages of the Second World War he served as a search and rescue dog in London. He attended the 1946 Civil Defence Stand–Down parade, where he was presented to the King and Queen, and Princess Elizabeth. His medal was auctioned in 2000 for £4,600 (US$6,964).

Tich (1940–1959) was a military dog during the Second World War. She was awarded the Dickin Medal in 1949 for her actions during the war as a battalion mascot to the King's Royal Rifle Corps. After the war she lived with her battalion handler at his home in the UK. When she died she was buried in the People's Dispensary for Sick Animals (PDSA)'s Ilford Animal Cemetery.

Battle of Khaz Oruzgan

The Battle of Khas Oruzgan occurred when a combined Australian, American, and Afghan patrol was ambushed by up to 200 Taliban fighters near the village of Khaz Oruzgan. The infamous battle was one of the most intense for Australian forces since the Vietnam war at the time.

Theo DM (2009–2011), was an English Springer Spaniel who served as a bomb detection dog for the British Army whilst stationed in Afghanistan. His handler, Lance Corporal Liam Tasker, was killed in March 2011, and Theo died within hours, following a seizure. The pair had set a new record for bomb finds during their time on deployment. Theo was awarded the Dickin Medal, also known as the animals' Victoria Cross, in 2012.

Bing (dog)

Bing was a dog who received the Dickin Medal in 1947 from the People's Dispensary for Sick Animals for bravery in service during the Second World War.

Lucky was a dog who received the Dickin Medal in 2007 from the People's Dispensary for Sick Animals for bravery in service during the Malayan Emergency.

Sasha DM (2004–2008) was a Labrador Retriever who served as a bomb detection dog for the British Army whilst stationed in Afghanistan. Sasha and her handler, Lance Corporal Kenneth Rowe, were killed in July 2008. Sasha was awarded the Dickin Medal, also known as the animals' Victoria Cross, in 2014.

Diesel was a seven-year-old Belgian Malinois RAID assault dog employed by the French police.

Lucca (dog) War dog

Lucca was a German Shepherd/Belgian Malinois service dog who was employed by the United States Marine Corps for 6 years. She was trained to detect explosives. She was deployed twice to Iraq and once to Afghanistan. In her over 400 missions, no human fatalities occurred under her watch. In 2012, while on patrol in Afghanistan, she was injured by an IED blast, necessitating the amputation of her left leg. After recovering at Camp Pendleton, Lucca officially retired in 2012 and was adopted by her original handler, Gunnery Sergeant Chris Willingham.

References

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.