Unsung WWII Hero- Buck the GSD - Page 1

He finally gets recognized!

An Excerpt from the article in the Cincinnati Enquire!

http://news.enquirer.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/AB/20070921/NEWS01/309210057/

The truth is he could have chosen any town in America – even Cincinnati, or Newport, Batavia, Hamilton, any place.
Every town was full of individuals and families whose lives were changed by that war. Here, from the Cincinnati area, is the story of one: Buck the War Dog.

Of the nine children of the Elfers family on Jefferson Avenue in Reading, three sons went to war – two to Europe, one to the South Pacific.
But, as if that were not enough to give to the war cause, the Elfers parted with another member of the family – their German Shepherd, Buck.
One day in July 1943, some young Army officers showed at the Elfers home to collect Buck, whom the Elfers had volunteered for the U.S. military’s “Canine Corps.” About 25,000 families around the country did the same – giving up family pets for two years or more to help out with security duty at hundreds of military installations and defense plants around the country.
It was the rage for awhile – Hollywood actress Greer Garson gave up her French poodle; opera star Ezio Pinza parted with his two Dalmatians, sending along some of his recordings in case the pooches got homesick for their master’s voice.
Buck, a stout and strong dog who had been barking at potential intruders from the Elfers household for some time, was probably more useful than a movie star’s poodle. Because he had been bought by the Elfers family when he was a pup for one dollar, he was named “Buck.”
“He was a good dog; and smart as could be,’’ said Jack Elfers, one of the Elfers boys who went to war. “The whole family was sorry to see him go.”
Elfers, who had enlisted and was waiting to be shipped out to the South Pacific when Buck left home, said the dog “knew something was up” and ran off to hide in the basement when the Army officers showed up.
But Buck was coaxed out of the basement with treats and off he went. For the next 27 months, he was a member in good standing of the U.S. Coast Guard, doing guard duty at installations on the California coast.
On Dec. 4, 1945, an officer from the War Dog Reception and Training Center at Fort Robinson, Neb., wrote the Elfers telling them that Buck had received his “honorable discharge” and would be shipped home via train soon – along with a warning that they might find Buck’s demeanor a bit different from when he left home.
The government assumes no responsibility for the dog after his departure from this center,’’ the lieutenant wrote.
But, soon, the Elfers family gathered at the Lockland railroad depot for a joyous reunion with Buck.
When Buck got home to Jefferson Avenue, Jack Elfers said, he immediately bolted down the basement steps to find the red ball he had hid there more than two years before.
“He was the same old Buck,’’ Jack Elfers said. “A good dog.”

 Good Ole' Buck!

A bit of trivia you may not be aware of: Rin Tin Tin's owner, Lee Duncan was instrumental in forming the K9 Corps in WW II:

http://www.petitiononline.com/RTT1/petition.html

Buck was one cool dude!!!  Along those same lines, I found this really interesting article entitled , "Dogs & National Defense".  It's a detailed history of the US military use of dogs.  It also describes details about care & training.  The whole article is very good reading:

http://www.qmmuseum.lee.army.mil/dogs_and_national_defense.htm