James Symington was the founder of the canine unit for the Halifax Regional Police. Trakr was a German Shepherd who came to the unit from Czechoslovakia in 1995 as a puppy. Trakr was part of the confiscation of over a million dollars of contraband, found missing persons, and helped make Read more
After the St. Mihiel Offensive on the Western Front in World War 1, Corporal Lee Duncan was sent to the village of Flirey to see if it had space for an airfield. On Sept. 15, 1918, he found a bombed-out kennel with a mother German Shepherd and her five Read more
Maria Dickin was a social reformer and animal rights activist. She created the People’s Dispensary for Sick Animals in 1917. It’s motto was: “Bring your sick animals/Do not let them suffer/All animals treated/All treatment free”. She even created a horse-drawn wagon that travelled the streets of London providing care Read more
Prince Rupert was the son of Frederick V of the Palatinate and nephew of King Charles I of England. He loved war and started his military career when he was just 13. He fought in the 30 Years War when he was 19. He was captured and imprisoned in Austria. Read more
I have created a YouTube channel to post short videos on famous animals in history. If you would like to see this story and others with images, check out “Felines and Friends”. (https://www.youtube.com/@krthardy) The most decorated American dog of WWII was a German Shephard-Collie-Malamute mix named Chips. He belonged to Read more
Judy was a pure-bred black and white pointer who was the mascot on the HMS Grasshopper. The Grasshopper was a gunboat patrolling the Yangtse River in China. Judy once warned of Chinese pirates trying to sneak aboard the boat. She attended a party on the USS Panay and got Read more
In 1944, a small Yorkshire terrier named Smoky was found in an abandoned foxhole in New Guinea. Corporal Bill Wynne purchased the dog for $2 and they became inseparable. She once saved his life when she warned him of an incoming shell when they were on the deck of Read more
On June 17, 1913, a ship named the Karluk left from northern Canada to explore the Arctic. The mission was the idea of anthropologist Vilhalmjar Stefansson. He recruited a crew of 13 sailors, 10 scientists, and four Eskimos. One of them brought his wife and two girls. And there were Read more
I recently started a YouTube channel called “Felines and Friends: Fact and Fiction” which has short videos on famous animals. Please check it out. “Sinbad the Fighter Cat” is one of them. Here is the text that went with it. The videos use AI generated narration and ChatGPT images, but Read more
In 1955, a Frenchman got the crazy idea of sailing a raft from Canada to Europe using the wind and ocean currents. He wanted to duplicate the voyage of the Kon-Tiki. The Kon-Tiki was a raft sailed by Thor Heyerdahl and five crewmen Read more