Skip Navigation Bar

Animals as Cold Warriors: Missiles, Medicine, and Man's Best Friend banner written in red lettering.

|  World War II   |  Atomic Animals   |  Canine Heroes and Medals   |  Antivivisection as Sabotage   |  Laika   |

Canine Heroes and Medals

During the Second World War, medical researchers and antivivisectionists drafted animals, primarily dogs, as partisans in the struggle over animal experimentation. With the rise of Cold War, pervasive anticommunism and fears of atomic annihilation moved animals and animal experimentation to center stage, mediating fierce conflicts over medical research and international politics.

Hygeia open to show the beginning of an article Man's Best Friend on pages 434-435. Both pages have images of dogs being recognized for their work as research dogs.

Medical researchers, and their allies in the armed forces, awarded military-style medals to animals in laboratories to emphasize the martial significance of animal experimentation. Here, Army Surgeon General Major General Norman T. Kirk, on behalf of the Friends of Medical Research, bestows medals upon research dogs Trixie and Josie "for outstanding services to humanity."
(NLM, Hygeia, 1946, 24:434-5)

The cover of cartoon booklet titled A Medal for Bowzer. The background is orange with an illustration a yellow dog wearing a medal in the center.
(NLM, MS C 417, Box 23)
A panel page of the cartoon booklet A Medal for Bowzer which has a Mrs Doogood thanking Doctor Goodlee for having animals participation in testing saving her son's life. THe last panel has the doctor holding Bowzer and stating that he deserves a medal for being a real hero of medicine.
Click for a larger image.