The Most Decorated Dog In History (3 page)

Stubby’s gift for giving advance warning of a gas attack was partly due to personal experience – he had been gassed himself. It was only on one occasion but the experience left its mark. As the unit was advancing over open ground, a gas shell landed and broke by Stubby’s paws. He had no chance of escaping the poisonous cloud. Conroy picked up his beloved dog in his arms and ran back to the trenches where the medic was called. Stub-by’s eyes were deeply affected: the gas had sealed his eyelids shut and they were oozing horribly. There was nothing Conroy or his team of dedicated helpers could do but continue to bathe his eyes and wait for signs of recovery. Stubby lay on his cot for days without moving. He did not respond to the gentle touch of the soldiers tending to him. He could not even manage a whimper. The sadness was overwhelming for Private Conroy. He feared the worst and wished that he could conjure up a picture of his dog running free and happy on the Yale Field. All he needed was a sign to give him a glimmer of hope and, after a week of stillness and silence, he got it. One evening, as the soldier sat by his dog talking to him about happier times and familiar things, an incredible thing happened: Stubby wagged the stump of his tail. It must have taken enormous effort on the dog’s part, he was so weak. Conroy could not help but shed a tear of relief.

During the time he had been ill, Stubby had, once again, visited his friends in the casualty centre where surgical operations were taking place all day and night in addition to the many cases requiring bandaging and bathing. Once again, Stubby was made welcome and as soon as he was feeling better he started to wander amongst the patients, cheering them up and being the centre of attention. They loved him! No matter how ill the patients were, they would try to reach out to stroke the dog. He was the best distraction from pain and the best form of medication known to man. Some in the hospital had this dog to thank for either finding them on the battlefield and bringing help or barking an air-raid warning or gas alert. This dog was a friend and a lifesaver. He was becoming famous among the troops along the front line.

Every effort from the Germans to shut down the Allied Force crumbled with the Second Battle of the Marne. Despite their high hopes to use the Spring Offensive to crush the British and American troops, the Germans failed. Even their highly trained Storm Troopers were put under pressure by the relatively inexperienced US troops and sent into retreat. Still, there seemed no let-up in the march for glory. Millions already been killed and yet no lessons had been learnt from the disaster at Gallipoli, the many months of hell played out at Ypres, the yellow mud of the Somme and the seemingly never-ending campaign in Verdun. With neither side showing signs of superiority or ultimate strength it was likely the US joining the war could be mistaken for more cannon fodder for the German machine guns. Nothing had been solved and the two sides remained locked along rigid lines that ran from the Belgian-French border on the Channel to Luxembourg and the German border.

Peace remained elusive but the thirst for victory intensified on both sides. By the time the fighting commenced in Chateau Thierry in June 1918, the intense focus on the use of artillery was taking its toll on the troops and the environment. Shells blew deep holes in the earth and buried or split open the soldiers who ventured into their path. The sight of trees blown completely out of the ground or covered in soldiers’ remains was something the survivors would replay in their nightmares for years to come. This pretty French town was scarred by the war and to help win it back for the Allies the Americans drafted in more of their countrymen. African-American regiments were called up to do their duty serving with the French troops. It gave units like the Harlem Hellfighters (the 93rd Infantry Division) a chance to live up to their name – they were certainly being posted to the nearest place anyone could imagine to a hell on earth. Serving with the French 16th Division, this unit went on to receive the Croix de Guerre for its action in Chateau Thierry.

The Americans were to engage in a series of pitched battles and Stubby would play his part, showing every time an amazing allegiance to his master. One day, as the units advanced over open, shell-cratered ground, the artillery bombardment was heavy and unrelenting. Suddenly, the men saw Stubby hit the ground and for one terrible second Conroy thought he had been hit. But then the dog’s front paws went up over his ears and his stubby tail stuck out behind him. Seconds later, a huge explosion hit with earsplitting effect. Conroy was on the floor, thrown and stunned but impressed with his dog’s actions. Stubby had sensed the oncoming shell and if the men had been watching him they could have all hit the ground well ahead of the explosions. From that moment on, the troops stayed close to Stubby because as their advanced warning system he would inevitably save lives. Conroy could not have been more pleased with and proud of his dog.

The Second Battle of Marne had instigated an offensive by the Allied Forces which would became their first major and victorious offensive of the war. The Hundred Day Offensive started on 8 August 1918 and it would prove to be a black day for the German Army who were now beginning to realize the counterattacks by the Allies were becoming more decisive. By 18 September and the start of the Battle of St Mihiel, south-west of Verdun, the combined forces of the Americans, French and Canadians were ready to help turn the tide of the war. For the first time, the infantry were supported by an air strike of 1,000 aircraft and together they destroyed the German presence. It was the final time in the Great War that territory was deliberately recaptured from the Germans.

By 11 November 1918, the Germans had surrendered and the Armistice was signed in a railway carriage specially sited in the woods of Compiegne, near Beauvais. There was no further need to slice away territory and fight to take it back. It was all over. Or so it seemed.

While the bulk of the Allied Forces were going through the motions of the Armistice, American Forces were still entrenched at the confluence of Meuse and Argonne. It was the last stand of the war and in the desperate throes of the action to retain and regain territory and dignity, the frantic gunfire and grenade attacks were still taking lives. It was ironic that all through their eighteen months together in a foreign country and engaged in hostile activities, it was only in the last days of these horrific hostilities that Private Conroy sustained a serious head injury. A stray bullet embedded itself in Conroy’s skull and almost before he hit the ground Stubby was at his master’s side. He was used to tending to casualties by sitting with them and licking their wounds but this time the dog was agitated and only pacified when the stretcher bearers arrived to take Conroy to the field hospital.

Throughout his primary treatment, Stubby was alongside his master and no more than a whisker’s width away from him at all times. The aftercare was very protracted but that was not a problem as long as man and dog remained together. Lying with Conroy gave Stubby an opportunity to comfort other soldiers being brought in for treatment. Stubby would see them arrive on stretchers and then move in alongside them so he could lick their face, arms, hands, his big, rough tongue giving sign of affection and care. Stubby’s lick was often a reviving sensation and the one fond thing patients remembered when they woke.

Of course, Conroy received five-star treatment from Stubby during the time they were stretchered off the field and the weeks they were in the medical centre. But when it was decided the private should be moved to the American Hospital in Paris there was a doubt whether Stubby would be allowed to go too. It was one thing for field hospitals to accept mascot dogs but quite a different one for those hospitals located away from the front. Fortunately, the doctor in charge of Conroy’s case recognized the value of keeping this man and this dog together and pleaded the case with everyone he needed to. And Stubby, while licking his master’s hand, knew exactly what he had to do to cajole the medics into allowing him to travel with his master: just be his normal adoring self. And it worked. The soldier and his faithful Bull Terrier were bound for Paris in an ambulance that rocked and shook but still managed to get dog and patient where they needed to be and in a bed for the night.

Stubby had acquired a kind of celebrity status since the moment he joined the Army and went to war. The way Conroy and his fellow soldiers treated the dog with care and respect made onlookers aware that this dog was highly thought of – anyone thinking otherwise would be given short shrift by the soldiers. This dog was special and everyone seemed to see that. Certainly the people of Chateau Thierry were very grateful to the men of the 102nd Infantry, 26th ‘Yankee’ Division for liberating their beautiful town from the occupying Germans. And as a thank you to the division, the very talented women of the town worked on a special chamois leather coat for Stubby to wear in the cold weather. But the coat was not entirely practical: all over the back and sides the women had sewn or attached the dog’s campaign medals, including the Chateau Thierry Campaign Medal, the French Medal of Verdun, St Mihiel Campaign Medal and the Republic of France Grande War Medal. After the war, many other decorations were added to the collection including the Wound Stripe which was replaced with the Purple Heart (America’s highest honour for bravery in conflict). But there were two other decorations that were linked by one of Stubby’s bravest deeds: the apprehension of a German spy in the US trenches.

It was early morning and the men were woken by a dog barking and howling. Conroy knew that it was his dog making all the commotion. He quickly gathered his rifle and ammunition, as he didn’t know what he was going to find, and made his way out of the dugout. There, lying on his face, on the top of the trench, was a German infantryman. His face was turned to the side and he looked ghastly. He must have been terrified out of his wits – he not only had a Bull Terrier standing on his back but Stubby also had a cheek of the man’s backside in his jaw. And there was no way on earth he was going to let go! Well, not until the men had gathered themselves together to take control of the prisoner. For this action, Stubby was awarded his three sergeant’s stripes for bravery. Much to the delight of his friends and fans worldwide he now outranked his master. In gaining his stripes, Stubby also became the first American dog to take an army rank. The men also thought that the German Iron Cross that he had dangling at the back of the coat was taken from his German prisoner; it seemed the kind of thing that could have happened. But no one knows for sure. And when the medal disappeared off the coat one day it put any worthwhile speculation to bed. But someone, somewhere thought the dog deserved this poetic justice.

After the ladies presented Stubby with his unique coat in the little town of Domrémy (the birthplace of Joan of Arc), the accolades came thick and fast for Stubby. There was hardly any room on the chamois leather coat to take any more. But the dog had fought in seventeen battles in four campaigns and that was quite a feat in itself. The greatest feat was that he survived at all. After completing their hospital visiting duties, it was time for the soldier and the dog to prepare to go home to America.

Although Stubby was well known for his heroic, life-saving deeds Conroy was reluctant to take any chances on the return journey. And so Stubby was smuggled aboard the troop ship the same way he arrived – under the cover of his master’s now very torn and weather-beaten greatcoat. It’s probable that several officers on duty when the ship docked and when the transfers were made from ship to shore turned a blind eye to the scruffy-looking dog who, like the men, was careworn, battle fatigued and in need of home comforts. No other soldier was going to deny this brave dog his passage home. No one could have that on their conscience.

The end of the war was really just the start of a new life for Stubby. He was destined to be the most decorated dog in America and, no doubt, the world. A well-wisher had added his sergeant’s stripes to the now famous coat. They had been sewn right alongside his ‘Yankee’ Division patch, which was probably the most treasured decoration of all. But the Americans had a greater accolade for this war dog, this champion who raised men’s morale in the depths of despair and human destruction. Presented to General ‘Black Jack’ Pershing – Supreme Commander of the American Forces during the war – Stubby was on his best behaviour. The world’s press was looking for the photograph that would capture the heroic spirit of the First World War: the general and the war dog and Stubby didn’t disappoint them. Sitting on a table to elevate him to a position where Pershing could decorate the dog for all to see, Stubby sat still and proud on his haunches as the medal was attached to his collar. He seemed to smile throughout the entire ceremony as if being at the centre of attention was his favourite place in the world. The medal was specially commissioned by the Humane Education Society (the forerunner of today’s Humane Society) and was made of gold bearing a simple inscription: ‘Stubby’.

In his capacity as returned war hero, Stubby met three US Presidents: Wilson, Harding and Coolidge, who all treated the dog with the same respect the soldiers showed, especially when he saluted them in his own special way. The dog had become as much a soldier as he was still a dog but there were certain canine things he could never be denied. The YMCA gave him lifetime membership plus three bones a day and a place to sleep for the rest of his life. He continued to help his old friends, the American Red Cross with recruiting campaigns and sales of Victory Bonds. As a lifetime member of the American Legion, he marched in every legion parade and attended every convention from the end of the war until his death.

Stubby was never going to need the three bones a day from the YMCA because he was heading home with his master, Private James Robert Conroy. When Conroy decided to study law at Georgetown University, Stubby went along too and in no time was mascot of the football team. He devised his own half-time show, nudging the ball along with his nose and having great fun along the way!