03/14/2022
HAPPY K-9 SERVICE DOG DAY!—"Chips" was the most famous and highly decorated service dog of WWII. A German shepherd, collie, husky mix, he was one of 10,425 dogs that saw service in the new “K-9 Corps” established on this day, March 13, 1942.
The K-9 Corps was the culmination of a program begun by Dogs for Defense, a civilian group of dog experts, and the American Kennel Club. Concerned about the vulnerability of America’s long coastline to enemy saboteurs, the two groups came together to provide the Army with trained sentry dogs. The program proved successful, and dogs that qualified as scouts, roughly 1000, were sent overseas for combat duty. Chips was one of them.
Chips’ very first assignment was as one of three dogs assigned as guard dogs for the Roosevelt/Churchill Casablanca Conference. Not a bad first assignment. But not likely the action that Chips must have wanted.
Chips was transferred to the 3rd Infantry Division. In the predawn hours of July 10, 1943, Chips went ashore in southern Sicily as part of Operation Husky. His handler was Pvt. John R. Rowell, a young man from Arkansas, now an MP with the 3rd Military Police Platoon, 30th Infantry Regiment.
As dawn broke, the platoon was working its way inland. A machine gun nest hidden in a nearby peasant hut opened fire raking everyone. Rowell hit the ground, but Chips broke free. Snarling, he raced into the hut. Rowell later recorded, “Then there was an awful lot of noise and the firing stopped.” The soldiers heard someone inside the hut fire a pistol. Roswell was sure Chips was gone. Then he “saw one Italian soldier come out with Chips at his throat. I called him off before he could kill the man. Three others followed, holding their hands above their heads.”
Chips suffered powder burns and a scalp wound from the pistol fired at close range. Medics treated Chips and released him to Rowell later that day. That night, while on guard duty Chips alerted Rowell of an infiltration attempt by ten enemy soldiers. Rowell and Chips captured all ten.
Within days the story of Chips’ heroics had swept through the division. Chips was awarded the Purple Heart and Silver Star. More was to come. The platoon’s commander, Capt. Edward G. Parr put in a recommendation that Chips receive the Distinguished Service Cross for “courageous action in single-handedly eliminating a dangerous machine gun nest and causing surrender of its crew.”
War Department regulations prohibited the awarding of decorations to animals. But in the case of Chips, 3rd Division Commanding General, Maj. Gen. Truscott, said “regulations be damned.” He waived them and on November 19 in Italy he personally awarded Chips the Distinguished Service Cross.
Chips continued his heroic service throughout the war seeking out the enemy at every opportunity. He was eventually honored by Supreme Commander Gen. Dwight Eisenhower—and gave Gen. Eisenhower a small nip on his hand to remember him by. Chips was honorably discharged in 1945 and returned to his owner Edward J. Wren of Pleasantville, NY.
To all military K-9s and their handlers, past and present we salute you. All The Way!
Photos, Chips with Pvt. Rowell, courtesy of the Army Signal Corps and the War Dog Memorial Statue of Chips in Somers, NY, by Lena Toritch
