Guard Dogs Skull Found at US Army Dump Dig.

[Falschirmjager]

This very interesting if unusual find was unearthed during the last dig on the US Army dumping ground. It soon became obvious through where it was found that this was not somebodys pet German Sheppherd but must have been as Shadowwolf Simon suggested one of the guard dogs from either the wartime airfield or the actual US Army storage depot. It was found at quite good depth and amongst all the military debris on the dump. Simons very good theory was that such an animal could not be rehomed after the closure of the facility due to its aggressive nature and was likely along with the other base guard dogs put to sleep. These dogs used to guard wartime facilities would have been trained to attack intruders on sight and would not have made a very friendly family pet. I think this skull which is deffinately from a German Sheppherd was found by Whitehunter-but please correct me if ive got this wrong as i cannot remember and am useless with names. Either way it was one of the more unusual finds and cleaned up very well. I soaked it in hot bleachy water for few hours which seemed to do the trick. One wonders just what other surprises are waiting to be found on the site which seems to throw up more interesting and unique finds with each visit. Regards, Tim.

[GasMasksUK]

I have to agree with Simons idea about the dog being killed once its purpose no longer existed, rather sad but it was for the best as a gaurd dog would be completely unsuitable as a pet unless someone liked the idea of being attacked whenever the dog felt threatened. It does remind me of quite a sad story about the treatment of dogs by the US Army in the First Gulf War, one of my relatives is an Army dog handler (theres a story in a book about his dog) and they have their own dogs which they train and work with all the time. He was involved in the First Gulf War and in some cases worked alongside US Soldiers. The sad part is that the US Soldiers regarded the dogs as simply pieces of equipment that was expendable, once it was time to go home the dogs were shot and left out on the road whilst the soldiers headed to the airstrip then home.

Thanks

Danny

[LUCKYSTRIKE]

Tim,
You've done a great job cleaning the skull, I remember it coming out of the ground a brown/rust stained mess. Its come up a treat and is still a very unusual find.
Thanks for sharing.
LUCKYSTRIKE
Ps You're correct Whitehunter dug it out.

[jimpy]

Its going to be interesting to see what we find over the August BH weekend, especially as we wont be "clock-watching" for the majority of it, you never know, we might find the rest of Fido!
Im looking forward to the weekend, but I'm also under orders from SWMBO to NOT bring home anymore bottles unless they are totally different from the ones already brought home!

Look forward to seeing you there guys.

Regards etc

Ian D

AKA: Jimpy


PS: Im also looking forward to seeing that nice 303 MG and G3 of yours Tim!

[noelh]

The sad part is that the US Soldiers regarded the dogs as simply pieces of equipment that was expendable, once it was time to go home the dogs were shot and left out on the road whilst the soldiers headed to the airstrip then home.

That could never be true, US soldiers like the rest of us would see the dogs as their companions. No dog handler could ever see 'their' dog as simply equipment. Whatever the practical realities of war, dog handlers have an emotional attachment to their dogs. Perhaps sadly the dogs could never be rehabilitated to a peactime role but it isn't fair to say that they are coldly executed as simply 'equitment'.

[dustyr55]

I have to agree with Simons idea about the dog being killed once its purpose no longer existed, rather sad but it was for the best as a gaurd dog would be completely unsuitable as a pet unless someone liked the idea of being attacked whenever the dog felt threatened. It does remind me of quite a sad story about the treatment of dogs by the US Army in the First Gulf War, one of my relatives is an Army dog handler (theres a story in a book about his dog) and they have their own dogs which they train and work with all the time. He was involved in the First Gulf War and in some cases worked alongside US Soldiers. The sad part is that the US Soldiers regarded the dogs as simply pieces of equipment that was expendable, once it was time to go home the dogs were shot and left out on the road whilst the soldiers headed to the airstrip then home.

Thanks

Danny

I, too, find it hard to believe that military working dogs would be summarily shot. I spent almost 15 years in the U. S. Army and know that things like that don't happen. A LOT of time and money is spent in training the dogs. When the handler rotates back to the U.S., the dog is retrained to accept another handler or may possibly rotate back with the departing unit.

Dusty

[Babyteeth]

I’m not sure it’s a German Shepard you know (check here), looks more like a Rough Collie (think Lassie) or a greyhound to me.
Also from the state of the teeth it was a very old dog, I think its more likely to have been someone’s pets on the base to be honest.

[HARRY THE MOLE]

When I was stationed in Dortmund there used to be an officer by the name of Captain Carruana (or something like that). He used to have a pet Border Collie-dog which went everywhere with him. Around April 1971 our regiment was preparing to move back to England. The quarantine laws at that time were very strict for animals moving back to England, so Carruana took his dog to the ranges and shot it dead with a Browning pistol. He couldn't bare to leave it in quarantine.

[Falschirmjager]

When I was stationed in Dortmund there used to be an officer by the name of Captain Carruana (or something like that). He used to have a pet Border Collie-dog which went everywhere with him. Around April 1971 our regiment was preparing to move back to England. The quarantine laws at that time were very strict for animals moving back to England, so Carruana took his dog to the ranges and shot it dead with a Browning pistol. He couldn't bare to leave it in quarantine.

Fascinating stuff and thanks everyone for your responses on this. As for the guard dog theory-this skull was found way back from where the post WW2 civilian housing estate lies, so i dont think anyone would have taken their beloved family pet so far away from their home and bury it in the bank of a stream, another issue is the depth it was found at and amongst all the rusted debris off the dumping ground hence its terrible discolouration when it was found. One other possible theory is that it may have been a mascot on the RAF Honeybourne base, sadly we will never know. Having compared the skull to another German sheppie one im pretty certain its German sheppie, as a collie has narrower upper jaw section whereas this one is broader and heavier. The damage to jaw and teeth in the bottom jaw may well have been down to being thrown in with the military debris, shifting of the ground over the years etc. I can a local expert to check it out to confirm possible age of the animal etc, so will see what comes up from that. Either way i wonder what we will find next as i certainly wouldnt be surprised if we dug up a T-Rex next lol! Regards, Tim.

[Whitehunter]

Well done Tim you have done a fantastic job cleaning it