42nd IPSD
WWII 42nd War Dog Platoon
European Theater of Operations – Italy, 1944
A year before the D-Day landings in Normandy, Allied forces had already crossed from North Africa into Sicily. Six months later, they were fighting on the Italian mainland, with some troops landing at Anzio—just 30 miles south of Rome. The campaign in Italy was tough, as they faced some of Germany’s most experienced troops.
By mid-1944, seven War Dog Platoons from the Quartermaster Corps were deployed to the European Theater of Operations. These were the 33rd through the 38th, plus the 42nd. All were scout dog platoons, except for the 36th, which was made up entirely of mine-detecting dogs.
However, conditions in Italy were not ideal for using dogs widely. Two scout dog platoons working with the Fifth Army in the fall of 1944 struggled, as many of the dogs were extremely sensitive to artillery fire. This gun-shyness was a major challenge for the early platoons, since their training only included exposure to small arms fire.
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