‘War Dogs Garden of Remembrance’ opens at Front Royal’s Julia Wagner Animal Shelter

In an April 14 press release from the Humane Society of Warren County, the Memorial Day weekend dedication of a “War Dogs Garden of Remembrance” at the society’s county animal shelter on Progress Drive off Shenandoah Shores Road was announced. The ceremony will compliment, but be separate from other Memorial Day events. As noted below, the dedication of the War Dogs Garden of Remembrance will take place on the Wagner Shelter grounds at noon, Saturday, May 28. Local law enforcement K-9 handlers, those with family connections to war dog service, along with all the county’s dog and animal lovers, are invited to attend.

As noted in the release, local canine lover, advocate, former HSWC Board of Directors President, and Royal Examiner contributing writer Malcolm Barr Sr. was instrumental in establishing the war dog memorial on the shelter grounds. Read the full HSWC release on the “War Dogs Garden of Remembrance” and its dedication below:

After some 10 years saluting the memory of military dogs lost in action in the wars since World War II, this year the dogs will be recognized in a separate ceremony in a newly-sculptured garden at the Julia Wagner Animal Shelter in Front Royal.

As in the past, the Front Royal ceremony will be held on Memorial Day weekend but separate from the annual Monday (May 30) salute to the dead of all wars: Saturday, May 28 at noon is the date set to honor the dogs of war at their own site at the shelter.

Said Malcolm Barr Sr., a past president of the Humane Society of Warren County (HSWC): “We felt it appropriate for the dogs to have their own memorial particularly since Front Royal was the first town in the country to train dogs for World War II before the U.S. Army took over the responsibility.”

‘War Dogs Garden of Remembrance’ patron Malcolm Barr Sr., with his Husky Diva, who appears to be modeling for the war dog memorial statue yet to arrive during this early visit to the Wagner Shelter garden site. Royal Examiner/HSWC Photo by Roger Bianchini

Barr provided the funding for the modest garden which was carved from the shelter grounds last fall to await a life-size German Shepherd statue. The statue marks the spot that ultimately will also be a quiet area for contemplation and rest for dog-loving individuals and others who visit the shelter.

Michael Williams, whose father was a dog handler in the Vietnam War, will conduct the Saturday ceremony and offer the blessing of the dogs of war, past and present, including the more recent introduction of dogs to assist in law enforcement on the home front, including those in Warren County.

HSWC Executive Director Meghan Bowers explains: “I just love to have such an important memorial to the bravery, companionship and accomplishment of dogs here at the shelter. There is nothing as special as the dedication and love of a dog or cat, and we are so proud have such a beautiful reminder to see every day.”

Veterans have returned from war zones with high praise for the dogs used in increasing numbers on the battlefield and by local law enforcement. Most dogs, once regarded as mere “equipment”, in recent years have been treated as soldiers, with rank usually above their handlers. They retire from battle usually with their handler and funds to help with their veterinary care.

While many dogs, specifically Belgian Malinois or Dutch or German Shepherds, come in from abroad, the U.S. Air Force now trains thousands of potential inductees at its Texas base near San Antonio. Back in May 2010, a small group of military and civilian advocates began raising money and lobbying for the nation’s first dog memorial which in 2012 was placed in the Airborne and Special Operations Museum in Fayetteville, NC, near Fort Bragg.

Among individual canine soldiers, which train between 6 and 12 months before going into the field, early recognition was afforded a dog named Remco who charged an insurgent’s hideout in Afghanistan, thus saving many soldiers’ lives. Two years later, in 2011, a Belgian Malinois named Cairo participated in the raid that killed Osama Bin Laden. During Vietnam, our war dogs were so successful in their jobs that, according to author Betty Frankel, bounties of up to $20,000 were placed on them by the North Vietnamese.

Persons interested, particularly those whose family members may have served with dogs during World War II, Korea, Vietnam, Afghanistan and Iraq wars, or local police officers whose duties involve dogs and wish to take part in the ceremony, please contact the shelter (540-635-4734) or call Malcolm Barr (540-636-7407).