So let me talk about dogs.
This the sign on the gate where I work.
Pretty scary, eh?"
Here are the ever-vigilant guard dogs inspecting an intruder.
Gee! He didn't even stop!
He went right on into the people cave!
Ok, if the pack didn't scare you, how about Bob?
We call him "Bob" because of his tail...or lack thereof.
He's a pretty good daddy.
The Alpha pup hanging out with Dad.
Ever since the pups have been weaned, Bob is the primary care-giver.
Nothing like a nap on a warm dirt pile in the sun!
These two are almost always together.
There is a third white pup, but he hangs with the Alpha.
The Alpha pup!
Confident, fearless and the most vocal.
My favorite, but I always like the dominant dogs,
as my wife can attest from my own dogs at home.
The runt...the shy one.
She's sweet and cute, but hangs back.
Dreaming of goodies!
This is one of the "neighbor dogs" at Camp Dubbs.
He resides at the guard shack.
He's fond of Westerners, but not Afghans.
The guards provide him with his own food and water bowls.
Most of the feral dogs around the camp have become socialized. Which actually comes in handy, because they are a great early warning system. The dogs tend to be cautious approaching Afghans they don't know, but they don't hesitate approaching Westerners. They seem to speak English -- clever dogs!
They get plenty to eat via the French, Italians, Americans, Aussies, Ghurkas and the occassional Afghan. The Afghan officers in our building typically put their left-over food in the lid of the trash can and leave it out for the dogs. The dogs near our office don't even need to drink from puddles because they have a big bowl that gets refilled with fresh water all day by the Afghans and Ghurkas.
11 comments:
Cute pups - wonder if Alpha will be the one with the fangs? Do they get innoculated against rabies?
momcat,
It's been hit and miss. The adult male dogs (there are a total of three) and one of the females that hang around have been vaccinated. The other two adult females are more elusive.
Whether the pups get vaccinated will depend upon how many survive the winter and whether the incoming commander is as enlightened as the out-going commander.
Normal policy is to simply euthanize all dogs and cats, but that often has negative morale consequences. No matter what the policy, soldiers tend to develop bonds with dogs, cats and kids wherever they are stationed.
My personal view is that the critters should be rounded up, vaccinated, neutered and spayed and then let loose again. That way the ones that "hang with the troops" will at least be safer and won't make any more.
Awe! I want one! I agree with your comment response above about vaccinating and fixing the animals. It seems these guys provide you all with security, companionship, and a little joy.
Take care!
Ah, the difference between perception and reality. Very cute bunch of dogs.
Such vicious beasts.
See, if the dogs can be so much the same around the world, why can't the people?
Oh, yeah. I guess we are...
they're wonderul!
Thanks for the great photos of the dogs. I hope the new commanding officer is a 'dog' person.
Hey how did I miss this post? It did not show up on my google reader! Curse google reader!
Very cute. But that first picture frightened me! ;o)
Oh, I am a dog person...I have two. Your photos are wonderful.
God Bless You for your service. I don't take our military for granted, I know that your job lets me sleep at night, and live my life freely, without fear.
Thank You.
Hi Krueger - mum loves your blog. It's good to get a true perspective of what life's really like in Afghanistan, she says there is so much crap spouted out by the media. The same for Iran. Mum's lucky to have an Iranian friend over here in France - she sweeps away the media hype for mum and tells it how it is. I just wanted to know if us dogs are still considered unclean by the muslims over there? Or is that media hype too?
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