User:Doctor Papa Jones/Animal welfare during World War II

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Animal welfare during World War II refers to the safety and wellbeing of animals during World War II.

Nazi Germany[edit]

Despite being a keen hunter, Göring announced in 1933 that those who still thought they could "continue to treat animals as inanimate property" would be sent to a concentration camp.[1]

After the National Socialists came to power in 1933, Germany saw a series of new and changing laws, some of which included animal welfare.[2] The new Nazi government took many measures to ensure the health and protection of animals, and several top Nazi chieftains such as Adolf Hitler, Heinrich Himmler, and Hermann Göring were strongly opposed to the mistreatment of animals.[3][4][5][6] Animal welfare eventually became a top political issue within the Nazi state.[7] The current animal laws in Germany are modified versions of those introduced by the Nazis.[8]

At the outbreak of war, Germany had hundreds of zoos which housed hundreds of thousands of animals, of which most were killed by Allied bombings.[9][10] On 22 November 1943, the Berlin Zoological Garden, the biggest zoo in Germany, was attacked by British bombers which destroyed the zoo and killed over 3,000 animals.[10][11] When the war ended, only 91 out of the zoos 15,000 animals had survived.[10]

During the invasions of Poland, France and the Soviet Union, millions of horses were used in large military campaigns, a total of about 2,75 million.[12][13] However, as summer turned to winter in Russia, an estimated 170,000 horses were killed by freezing temperatures outside Moscow in between December 1941 and January 1942.[14]

United Kingdom[edit]

The United Kingdom had augmented its initial Cruelty to Animals Act of 1849 with an anti-vivisection law in 1876. Other animal welfare laws followed, and animal rights movements. During the interwar period, the work of animal welfare charities gained acceptance for this cause.[15] However, because some animals (horses, donkeys, mules, and camels) were considered very transport-useful in times of war, Britain increased the use of such animals in the military up until the 1930s after the Second Boer War.[16][17]

Rip, a dog that became famous during The Blitz for founding victims in the wrecked houses.[18]

The German "Blitz" raids on London between September 1940 and May 1941 killed an estimated 750,000 animals, mostly house pets.[19][20] In the aftermath of this, the so-called "Dickin Medal" was created.[21] Described as "the animals Victory Cross" it was awarded to 53 animals (32 pigeons, 18 dogs and 3 horses) between 1943 – 1945.[22]

As a result of the weak British war economy, the army lacked modern military vehicles.[23] The notorious desert land and sandstorms of North Africa made it difficult for tanks and vehicles to get around. Therefore, the British forces employed some 6,500 horses, 10,000 mules, and 1,700 camels, and increased these numbers during the Allied invasion of Italy by using local mules.[24][25]

United Sates[edit]

Soviet Union[edit]

Japan[edit]

See also[edit]

Notes[edit]

References[edit]

  1. ^ Arluke & Sanders 1996, p. 133.
  2. ^ DeGregori 2002, p. 153.
  3. ^ Arluke & Sanders 1996, p. 132.
  4. ^ Proctor 1999, p. 5.
  5. ^ Kitchen 2006, p. 278.
  6. ^ Wilson, Bee (9 October 1998). "Adolf Hitler's diet". New Statesman. UK: Questia. Retrieved 22 July 2014.
  7. ^ Proctor 1999, p. 5.
  8. ^ Braun & Castree 1998, p. 92.
  9. ^ "Preparing for Emergency in Europe: 1939-1941". Japan Focus. Retrieved 21 September 2014.
  10. ^ a b c "Berlin Zoological Garden and Aquarium". Encyclopædia Britannica. Retrieved 21 September 2014.
  11. ^ "Campaign Diary December 1943". United Kingdoms National Archives. Retrieved 21 September 2014.
  12. ^ Dunn 2005, p. 224-225.
  13. ^ Flitton 1994.
  14. ^ Dunn 2005, p. 226.
  15. ^ Gardiner, Andrew (16 January 2014). "The "Dangerous" Women of Animal Welfare: How British Veterinary Medicine Went to the Dogs". Oxford University Press. Retrieved 22 July 2014.
  16. ^ Dent 1978, p. 61-64.
  17. ^ Gudmundsson 2004, p. 56.
  18. ^ "Ilford Animal Cemetery". PDSA. Retrieved 3 August 2014.
  19. ^ Molland, Judy (19 October 2013). "Remembering the 750,000 Animal Casualties of World War II". Care2. Retrieved 22 July 2014.
  20. ^ Campbell, Clare (31 October 2013). "What happened to Britain's pets during the second World War". Express. Retrieved 22 July 2014.
  21. ^ "PDSA Dickin Medal". PDSA. Retrieved 3 August 2014.
  22. ^ "The Dickin Medal". Animals In War Memorial. Retrieved 3 August 2014.
  23. ^ Jackson 2006, p. 138.
  24. ^ Costelle & Clarke 2009.
  25. ^ Army Medical Services Museum. "History of the Royal Army Veterinary Corps". RAVC History. Retrieved 30 July 2014.

Sources[edit]

Printed
Online


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