Herding Bronze Cats

The grave of US Army dog Sgt. Geronimo in the historic Denver Pet Cemetery. Author's Collection  Today is Memorial Day in the United States, a day we remember those who have fallen in the defense of our country. You can find a memorial to lost service members in every city and state in the United States. Some memorialize a specific event, platoon, or branch of the military. There are also a surprising number of memorials to war dogs. These military working dogs (MWD) did a variety of jobs in the military, including sniffing for explosives, tracking, guard duty and more. Many of the memorials specifically reference the Vietnam war, where dogs were helpful in navigating dense jungles, locating landmines and guarding sleeping men. I wanted to take some time today to mention a few of the memorials around the US that are dedicated to war dogs. Then I'll talk about visiting the grave of Sergeant Geronimo, a site near me that commemorates an interesting military dog. A select ...

Annie in bronze. Author's Collection I recently visited the grave of Annie the Railroad Dog in Ft. Collins. Annie's story is similar to Shep's , which happened not to far away. But it's not just their locations in Northern Colorado that make them similar. Both were mascots for transportation hubs while the country was shifting from trains to automobiles as our primary transport. Their stories dovetail nicely, with Annie's life ending in 1948, and the train station she lived in destroyed in 1953, while Shep appeared at the tollbooth shortly before it opened in 1952. Both became symbolic of the town and both garnered loyalty that protected their graves from encroaching change.  This plaque was added at the grave in 1997 following landmarking and restoration. Author's Collection What I can find of Annie's story begins in 1934, just west of Ft. Collins. She was found in a blacksmith shop in either Tinmath or Windsor, depending on the source. The bla...

Gravestones of the royal corgis overlooking Sandringham House. Daily Mail photo The last of a legacy died over the weekend. Willow, the last royal corgi of the Queen's own line was put to sleep. Willow suffered from a cancer-related illness. Taking stories from the headlines and talking about personal pet cemeteries is a little different from what I envision this blog covering. But, while its in the news, I'd like to take a minute to talk about the  Queen's corgis, and their graves. The royal corgis and Her Majesty's knees, circa 2012. Vanity Fair Photo Elizabeth and Margaret with Dookie. Royal Collection Trust Photo Queen Elizabeth II's love of corgis is well recorded. They often announce her arrival by trotting in just before she enters a room, and she has called them a part of the royal family. The dogs have roamed the castle since 1933 when she was young. When her father (who would be George the VI) was Duke of York he invited a corgi breeder to s...

Shep's Grave, "Part Shepard Mostly Affection." Author's Collection Shep, the Turnpike Dog The first memorial that I'd like to talk about is Shep's grave in Colorado. This site is near me so I've visited a few times prior to starting this blog. Shep's story is especially interesting to me as someone interested in the monuments since the community actually took the care to move it, preserve it and even interpret it years after Shep was gone. Here's his story. The Denver-Boulder Turnpike was championed by business interests North of Denver as a faster way to bring in visitors, workers and freight. The toll road connects Denver on the South, with Boulder on the North, which was just beginning to shift from a sleepy community to a national center for science and technology. When the Turnpike opened on January 20, 1952, by most accounts Shep was already a fixture. It's difficult to pin down exactly where the dog came from. If we co...