Customer Reviews

Always Faithful: A Memoir of the Marine Dogs of WWII

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I was on Guam in 1994 during the 50th anniversary of Guam's liberation. Dr. Putney came for the occasion, and for the dedication of the War Dog Memorial. Dr. Putney was instrumental in making the beautiful memorial site, with sculptor Susan Bahary Wilner's "Always Faithful" statue of dog Kurt, a reality. There are web pages about the memorial, which is not actually located at the dog gravesite but at the Navy base for safekeeping. Dr. Putney has done all of us a great service by so realistically telling how valuable dogs have been to our liberty. He speaks from a heart that has been dedicated to those dogs for over 50 years. Thank you, Dr. Putney.

I enjoyed the book because of the amazing details that accompany each episode of the book from the training at Camp Lejeune to the battles at Guam. What really jumps out for the reader is the challenges to train the dogs and the critical role they played in WWII. The war scenes on Guam are realistic and the deaths of the dogs touch the reader's heart. Yet there are triumphs of the spirit as the dog's prove themselves over and over again. There are several humorous scenes that occur during training and at other times in the book that provide a laugh including the several scenes at Camp Pendleton. You find yourself lost in Dr Putney's journey that leaves one turning the pages to "see what happens next!" Truely a vital testament to the Marine War Dogs of WWII and those who pay them tribute! Bravo Zulu! A great read!

A pretty crummy title for a very good book...but a there is a reason for it. This is a complete story of the beginning, the middle(WW II), and the end of a project that took a long time to get started and was so successful...so compelling so... that it was permanently disbanded after WW II. This is the story of the relationship of a dog to its master as applied during time of war and how thousands of lives were saved because of the talents of the dogs and their trainers and masters.

To quote from the book, "By 1946 military brass had decided to stop recruiting dogs from the civilian population....The war dog program fell into chaos and the Quartermaster Corps declared that it was discontinuing forever the K-9 Corps." This points out the absolute stupidity of "authority." If you read this book you will be uplifted with a loving emotion and learn why dogs are so effective in war and then discover the total stupidity of those bound to stop such an effective program. It is beyond human comprehension. You will enjoy this book!

Dr. Putney's memoir of the dog companies on Guam is a very interesting read regarding one of the more forgotten fighting units of the war. These were civilian dogs enlisted for war, trained for war, and then re-trained for civilian life. It was a great testament of the versatility of dogs that they could go from the horrors of war back into civilian life as well as the intelligence of the men returning from that war that they were able to return these dogs to their civilian lives. Why was that lesson forgotten? Why were the military dogs of the Vietnam Era left behind and not returned to civilian life? Why did it take until President Clinton for the military dogs to be once again allowed to retire to civilian life? It doesn't make much sense to me.

This book will by turns, make you smile, make you comfortable and content and also make you cry.

Dr Putney is a warm and friendly writer, his style of writing makes you feel as though you are sitting in his living room, next to the fire and listening to him talk about his experiences in World War II. Dr. Putney's love for life and the dogs he cares for comes through loud and clear. The shenigans that he and some of his Marines pull is definately true to form!

A very enjoyable book that belongs in the library of all dog lovers.

Without any doubt, the best history of war dogs I have read. Always Faithful (Semper Fidelis) is the author's personal history of his experience as a Marine Corps war dog platoon commander in WWII. William (Bill) Putney, "Put" to his colleagues was a board certified veterinarian assigned to the newly formed war dog platoon. Putney details the history from the training of both dogs and handlers to the crucible of combat in the liberation of Guam in 1944. There was no existing Marine Corps K9 operations doctrine. Therefore Putney had to develop both doctrine and build confidence in operational commanders on K9 capabilities. He provides detailed and vivid descriptions of the famed "Devil Dogs" in combat against the Japanese. Always Faithful provides first person accounts of the sacrfices made by both handler and dog in the liberation of Guam. There are occasional tidbits of humor, specifically the reaction of a Doberman when given K-Rations by its handler. Bill Butney received a Bronze Star with Combat "V" and a Purple Heart. He retired from the Marine Corps as a Captain and began a successful veterinary practice in San Diego. He was the moving force in the restoration of the War Dog Memorial on Guam dedicated to the many dogs killed in action. Before his death in 2003, Bill worked tirelessly to support passage of the Presidential Executive order which insured that veteran war dogs would be returned to the United States.

"A heart-rending story of courage and loyalty that should be celebrated." --LEON URIS, author of BATTLE CRY and EXODUS

"Putney's book is an up-close view of the hell of war that William Tecumseh Sherman described. It's also the heartfelt evidence of the bonding between man and dog and the mother of all the heroic dog stories you've ever heard." --LEATHERNECK

"I can scarcely remember ever being so taken with a book as I was with Always Faithful." --ELIZABETH MARSHALL THOMAS, author of THE HIDDEN LIFE OF DOGS

"Always Faithful is a powerful tribute to the bond between the marines of WWII and their dogs, told by the author who experienced it firsthand." --DOG AND KENNEL

"A unique animal and war story, this memoir is a tribute to all who cherish the loyalty and bonds that dogs give their owners." --LIBRARY JOURNAL

Being a lover of all dog breeds and in particular, Dobermans - I was not aware of the role the Doberman Pinscher played in the pacific islands during WWII until reading Dr. Putney's book.Of course there were other breeds that were of significant worth to the Marines - but Dr. Putney gives a heart-rendering account of the gallantry and sacrifice of the Doberman (Kurt and others)while under fire. He also implies that the blood-thirsty, killer reputation later associated with the beautiful,sleek canine as well as other war dogs was ill-deserved. This was evident in his successful program to detrain the dogs and put them back with their civilian owners or their Marine handler after the war. To bad it took so long to learn a lesson from this:in later wars the military dogs were abandoned,left behind. It would probably be impossible to know exactly how many soldiers' lives were saved by these courageous dogs and their handlers. After doing their time in hell,the only thing a soldier dog required was the love and affection of a master and the chance to please....

This is a must for dog lovers. However, it also provides a vivid portrait of marine life in WWII.

I read this book for a class assignment. It was great! It's perfect for someone who loves dogs and the history of it even kept my interest. And it's not TOO sad like some animal books can be. It's also got some comic relief in it too. Quick read, interesting, informative.