An american flag is flying in a field at sunset.

The Animals in War and Peace Medal Ceremony

Celebrates Six Remarkable K-9 Heroes

  This week saw the second presentation of the Animals in War and Peace Medal Presentation which highlights and recognizes the bravery and sacrifice of animals in our society.


  The Medal of Bravery, which was instituted in 2019 and the newly inaugurated Distinguished Service Medal were awarded to six recipients at the ceremony on Capitol Hill on Wednesday afternoon (March 9 2022).


  The medals were presented by members of Congress and were followed by a procession of service animals from a wide range of sectors, including law enforcement, the fire department, therapy and search and rescue dogs.


  Our own president, Chris Willingham, played a key role in this year’s celebrations, as a member of the leadership committee. On the awards, Chris said: “These awards align with our mission at US War Dogs as they shine a well-deserved spotlight on the incredible role of animals in society, including that of military working dogs. The event highlighted a number of awe-inspiring stories spanning over 70 years, from World War II and Vietnam to the actions of dogs serving our country today.


  “A number of the US War Dogs team joined me at the event and we were honored to be a part of this historic occasion.”


  War Dogs Honored


  Three military working dogs were awarded the Medal of Bravery, including Nemo – the US Air Force scout dog who served in Vietnam. While charging an enemy ambush in 1966, Nemo was shot twice. Despite his horrific injuries, he managed to crawl back to his handler – who had also been shot – and protect him until help arrived.


  US Marine Corps multi-purpose canine (MPC), Ziggy was also honored for his actions across five international deployments. Ziggy’s owner and former Marine Corps dog handler, Sean Hemphill, accompanied him to the ceremony and was proud to witness his decoration.

 

  Also added to the Medal of Bravery’s roll of honor was Navy Seal Dog, Cairo, who was posthumously awarded for his distinguished career, including the role he played in Operation Neptune Spear – the world-famous operation that successfully eliminated Osama Bin Laden.


  Previous MWD recipients of the Medal of Bravery include US Marine Corps specialized search dog (SSD), Lucca and MPC Bass – handled and owned by our very own Chris Willingham and Alex Schnell, respectively.


  New Silverware


  The Animals in War and Peace Distinguished Service Medal was awarded for the first time this year, to three recipients, including former US Secret Service dog, Hurricane, who successfully stopped a fence jumper from entering the White House, during a security breach in 2014 and US Coast Guard bomb detection dog, Feco. Hungarian Vizsla, Feco has completed over 1,300 separate searches across the Bay area – helping to keep the California coastline safe and secure.


  WWII dog, Smoky, was posthumously awarded the Distinguished Service Medal for the role that she played as a constant companion to Bill Wynne, who served with the Fifth Air Force Battalion, in New Guinea and the Philippines. The tiny Yorkshire Terrier, racked up 12 sorties and was labelled the ‘first therapy dog of record’ by Animal Planet.



In Conversation With… US Army Veterinarian, Jim Giles

July 2, 2025
In Conversation With… US Army Veterinarian, Jim Giles The K-9 community is blessed to have a richness and diversity of the skillsets within it – and this is something that we at US War Dogs is always keen to spotlight. In this interview, we were honored to chat with former US Army Veterinarian, Jim Giles, about his career that spanned the height of Operation Enduring Freedom.  Jim helps us to peer behind the surgical curtain of what life was truly like for the professionals who were charged with saving our injured MWDs in military theater. He also introduces us to one of the MWDs whose story he is honored to be part of.

Q2 2025: Talking War Dogs

July 2, 2025
Talking War Dogs Q2, 2025 Update As we bid farewell to another busy three months, it’s my pleasure to give you a round-up of what we’ve been up to: From support provided to our active duty and retired K-9s, to spreading the good word of War Dogs at events and supporting important fundraising efforts that help us to continue our vital mission… Read all about it, right here! Supporting our MWDs Delivering our vital programs of support to our active duty and retired MWDs is at the very heart of what we do. Our team of volunteers help to facilitate life-saving veterinary care through our Emergency Care Program; sign up new dogs to the Rx prescription medications program and much more. During April, May and June we saw: 30 new Rx sign-ups Supported 19 dogs through our Emergency Care program, to the tune of $24,000 Sent out 13 MWD Service Awards, in grateful thanks and recognition for a career of service to our nation Supported six families through our Rainbow Bridge Assistance program, covering the cost of euthanasia, cremation and providing personalized urns to the families who wanted them We also spent in excess of $38,000 on Rx medications over the last quarter, alleviating the financial burden for the families of our retired MWDs and making sure they get the meds they need to stay happy and healthy. For every person and business who supports our mission, know that you are part of something very special!

US War Dogs In Conversation With… National Service Animals Memorial Founder, Chair and Sculptor, Susan Bahary

March 29, 2025
US War Dogs In Conversation With… National Service Animals Memorial Founder, Chair and Sculptor, Susan Bahary

Q1 2025: US War Dogs Highlights

March 29, 2025
Q1 2025: US War Dogs Highlights Our 25th birthday year has gotten off to a flying start and our president, Chris Willingham, has compiled a look back over the last three months’ activities and what our team has achieved, in service to the K-9 community. What’s going on, K-9 fam?! I hope that the first quarter of 2025 has treated you and your families well. We are so excited to finally be in our birthday year, which we knew was going to be one of our biggest and busiest yet, as we have been planning some epic ways to celebrate this incredible organization’s milestone. We weren’t wrong – it’s been a great start and we are pumped for the next chapter in this journey to the big 25. But along with all the birthday preparations (more on that shortly), our business-as-usual work to support military working dogs – active and retired – continues at a pace. We were thrilled to sign 31 new retirees up to our Rx program – giving them access to the medications they need – and all funded by US War Dogs. Overall, we provided meds totaling over $35,000 .

Your War Dogs Store

March 29, 2025
Your War Dogs Store

A Final Update for 2024!

December 28, 2024
A Final Update for 2024! The last three months of 2024 have been action-packed, with US War Dogs’ suite of programs providing well-deserved support for our K-9 community. A busy final quarter means that the overall care we’ve been able to provide this year has been incredible! Let’s dig into the details… Supporting Our Retired K-9 Heroes We’ve signed up 91 new retired MWDs to our Rx program and spent over $167,000 on treatments through our Emergency Care program. We are particularly proud of this program, as it was developed in response to the need arising from within the community and through conversations with handlers and adoptive families about the challenges they face.  Since rolling out this program last year, we’ve not seen a single Go Fund Me page for retired MWDs, needing support with treatments. This is something we are exceptionally proud of. Read more about some of the recipients of care through the program, like Rex, SSeneca and Gunner.

In Conversation With… US Army dog handler and Purple Heart recipient, Alec Alcoser

December 28, 2024
In Conversation With… US Army dog handler and Purple Heart recipient, Alec Alcoser

War Dogs Turns 25!

September 27, 2024
War Dogs Turns 25! As our big birthday year fast approaches, we have some very special dates for your calendar in 2025, as we look forward to celebrating our quarter-century in epic style.

War Dogs Summer

September 27, 2024
War Dogs Summer Our president, Chris Willingham, takes a look back at our work and our impact across July, August and September.  The last three months have been super busy for US War Dogs. Our vital support for the K-9 community continues to increase as word spreads further about who we are and what we do. We love nothing more than signing up new retired MWDs to our Rx Program and providing vital support when dogs and their families need it most, and this last quarter has been no exception. We were thrilled to welcome 18 new dogs to our Rx Program this quarter, including US Navy patrol and explosive detection dog (PEDD) Ivo, who retired with his former handler, Dan. Notorious as being the most aggressive dog in the kennels at NAS Lemoore, CA, six-year-old Ivo has become the model house dog in retirement, lounging and enjoying meeting new people. Ivo was retired with lumbar-spinal stenosis, so the provision of medications through the Rx Program will really help alleviate the financial burden for Dan and his family. Welcome to the pack, Ivo!

Volunteer Highlight: Kim Roberson

August 16, 2024
Volunteer Highlight: Kim Roberson The team at US War Dogs is almost completely made up of retired, honorably discharged or current serving members of K-9. Kim Roberson is the trainer at Eielson Air Force Base in Fairbanks, Alaska. She takes excellent care of our social media and we are blessed to have her as part of the team. We chatted with Kim to learn more about her military service and experiences and why she chose to dedicate her precious free time to US War Dogs.