47th IPSD Diary

"A collection of platoon members' accounts of the times and events of the 47th Infantry Platoon (Scout Dog)"

Select Year: 1968 | 1969  | 1970 | 1971

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Date

Event/Comments

January 1969
01/12/69 Jets quarterback Joe Namath "guaranteed" victory on the Thursday before the game, then went out and led the AFL to its first Super Bowl victory 16-7 over a Baltimore team that had lost only once in 16 games all season. Platoon members listened to the live broadcast in the early morning hours on Armed Forces Vietnam radio (AFVN).
01/16/69 At the Paris peace talks, U.S. and North Vietnamese delegates finally agree on the shape of the table to be used when the South Vietnamese and the National Liberation Front joined the negotiations. Four party talks begin.
01/??/69 Vet Tech John Carter heads for Sidney, Australia on R&R.
01/20/69 Richard M. Nixon is inaugurated as the 37th U.S. President and declares "...the greatest honor history can bestow is the title of peacemaker. This honor now beckons America..." He is the fifth President coping with Vietnam and had successfully campaigned on a pledge of "peace with honor."

At the Paris peace talks, Henry Cabot Lodge replaces W. Averell Harriman as chief U.S. Negotiator.

01/25/69 PFC George Bowers gets finger shot off from friendly fire while on platoon business out side of base perimeter at LZ Sharon.
01/28/69 2nd Brigade Sign The latest 2nd Brigade Statistics are posted on the welcome sign at the VIP landing pad at LZ Sally. 1LT Peter R. Engelhardt worked in Operations in the HQ of the 2nd Brigade at Sally from October 1968 through August 1969. Peter served under the Brigade Commander COL John A. Hoefling.
Referring directly to the sign Peter recalled in his 02/21/01 e-mail to platoon member Bert Hubble his service with and memories of COL Hoefling:
"The (attached) photo of the 2/101 "Welcome" sign, taken on January 28, 1969, says it all. Operation Nevada Eagle had run about 10 months, as of that date. As you can see, we only sustained 30 troopers KIA and had a kill ratio of 49:1. Why was that? The answer is that Col. Hoefling (now Major General, retired) gave the following standing order to his line officers:

Find them. Pull back. Put the shit on them.

Col. Hoefling was finishing his one year tour as the 2/101 commander when the 3d Brigade ran into the NVA Regiment at Hamburger Hill. Col. Hoefling would have never required his men to perform John Wayne tactics. While I have never discussed this subject with him, I feel certain that we would have cordoned the hill off, tightened the perimeter and held on for possibly weeks and reinforced, while the air force, marines, artillery and off-shore naval guns from the USS New Jersey would have "degraded" the enemy into obliteration. That hill had no strategic importance.

Please understand that, while I was physically closer to the top decision makers, I was no different than any other trooper. I just did what I was told, when I was told and executed the directives to best of my ability. I was not privy to top secret intelligence emanating from the Army Security Agency platoon stationed at LZ Sally. I was not privy to long range plans. I worked for the S-3, Major Dickerson. He spent 18 hours a day with the Col. in C&C choppers. I was the "night duty officer" from 16:00 to 8:30 and gave the morning briefing to the top officers and NCO's, as to results, troop disposition and enemy activity.

Col. Hoefling did not waste any of his people. The loss of life and maiming of troopers is unavoidable in any combat scenario. But, I feel that Col. Hoefling's objective was to inflict the maximum casualties on the enemy possible, with the smallest losses on our side and secure our AO (area of operation) from any repeat of the TET Offensive debacle. But again, I have never, ever discussed any of this with him. These are my views, captured from my perspective as a 1st Lt., who was privileged to serve with the 2/101 and under Col. Hoefling's command. I would have followed that man anywhere, at any time and done anything that he commanded. That is the level of loyalty and respect I have for that man.

In closing, I can only say this:

On the evening of his departure from the 2/101 to his new assignment in the Pentagon, Col. Hoefling told me this:

"Pete - you will never enjoy, in civilian life, the comraderie that we have enjoyed at the 2d Bridge."

And, he was absolutely right. That 2/101 was the finest organization I ever served under or was associated with. We were one of the best line units in the field. I do not think that we could have been more effective.

Regards,

Peter R. Engelhardt"

01/29/69 Handler Ronnie McCrary arrives at LZ Sally. McCrary begins a 20-month tour with the 47th that runs until August 24, 1970 (he re-ups half-way through). Accompanying McCrary into the platoon are handlers Allen Matthews and Gary Detrick.
01/31/69 Beal and Arellano 30 day drop from field for DEROS
01/31/69 Scout Dog Lion 12M8 was reported sick during January of unknown causes.
01/31/69 Platoon Monthly Action Report items:
  • Still working with combat tracker teams
  • Searches: 67, Ambush: 39, Recons: 24
  • Direct Results: 6 POWS, 1 AK-47, Supplies
    • ??/69 Platoon clubhouse Platoon "Club" tent set up in area for recreational activities. Rusty Allen used his checkbook (Hull State Bank, Hull, Texas) at the PX at Camp Eagle to buy beer and a B&W TV.
    February 1969
    02/69 Gene Wright receives early out to attend graduate school at Michigan State University and returns to the States. Alfred Arrellano's tour is over and he accompanies Wright on the trip south to Bien Hoa to head home.
    02/69 Jonathan Wahl goes on R&R to Taipei.

      Military Script (MPC) 25 cents
    Miltary Script Periodically, the government changes all the script money that military personnel are required to use for purchases at PX's, etc. The money used is called Military Payment Certificates - MPC. Although they are not supposed to, soldiers pay the Vietnamese for services such as laundry, barbers, retail etc. in MPC. By exchanging the new money for the old MPC, many Vietnamese locals are caught holding hundreds of dollars of "old" MPC that they can not exchange.

    02/69 Rusty Allen and Jimmy Powrzanas are granted 7-day leaves. At Camp Alpha all outbound flights for Bangkok are booked so they spend the week in downtown Saigon.
    02/??/69 SP4 Leroy Jackson and his dog Bizz 16M6 support a search and sweep operation near Hue with the A/1/501 infantry. Bizz, working off-leash, encounters a 200-lb. tiger in the jungle which chases him. Jackson fires his M-16 to scare off the tiger and Bizz is saved. Click here to read a Pacific Stars and Stripes article which describes the incident.
    02/28/69 Platoon Monthly Action Report items:
  • Search: 105, Village Search: 15, Ambush: 80, Recon: 50, Total Days in Field 174
  • Major Operations Supported: Nevada Eagle
    • 02/28/69 Operation Nevada Eagle, which began on 05/17/68, concludes. The entire 101st Airborne Division plus the 3d Brigade, 82d Airborne and 1 ARVN division conducted this reconnaissance in force, and it was a cordon and search operation aimed at supporting government pacification and rice denial efforts in central Thua Thien Province. Casualties: US 175 KIA, 1,161 WIA; enemy 3,299 KIA and 853. POWs
    March 1969
    ??/6? Large conduit bunker built between barracks tents.
    03/03/69 Handler Don Jestes gives up Scout Dog King 64A0 and is assigned Scout Dog Rebel X202. The day is spent field training with the dog. Jestes recalls (reference his e-mail of 11/14/2000):
    "...King was not a good dog in the field, actually walked me directly into 7 VC while on a roving night ambush, returning from the field I said I would rather go to jail than go back to the field with that dog..thats when I was given Rebel, and King was sent down south to become a blood donor..."
    03/12/69 Bernard Hrouda installs barbed wire around the platoon area.
    03/14/69 Red Cross "Doughnut Dollies" visit LZ Sally and the 47th compound.
    03/??/69 Lt. Roberto L. Miller received a package from his mother in Italy with ingredients for a spaghetti dinner and decided to cook the spaghetti for the platoon. He cooked the pasta in a big bowl and took it outside the "Beer tent" to drain. When he spilled out the water out came the spaghetti which fell onto the gound. Miller scooped up the spaghetti and tried to wash it off, then added the spaghtetti sauce and insisted that everyone dig in. Sam Bowers recalled that was the "crunchiest" spaghetti he ever ate.
    03/15/69 Rusty Allen escorts Gary Detrick, Clinton Epps and Sam Bowers into the A Shau Valley for their first-ever combat missions. Rusty walks slack* for Detrick. Teams get into firefight with dug-in regiment of NVA that keeps them pinned down for four hours. Proper, Brackett and Hong join the mission to relieve the exhausted teams.
    * The term "slack" refers to the second position in a linear patrol. The dog handler walked "point", i.e., the first position.
    03/21/69 At 0800 hrs handlers Don Jestes, Larry Proper, Bernard Hrouda, and Thomas Muir board a chopper for the A Shau to support the B/1/502 infantry. Proper pulls the first mission and gets pinned down in a firefight - several infantrymen are wounded, 2 KIA, and 2 MIA. The teams spend the night in a destroyed NVA bunker complex.
    03/21/69 Leroy Jackson and his Scout Dog Bizz #16M6 were pulling a mission in the A Shau Valley. For several days prior, the unit they were supporting had major contact with VC Forces. The Scout Dog team stopped to rest before heading up a hill that was known to have enemy forces in recent days. As they rested Leroy heard a round being chambered but he knew it was not from his unit. At that time he let his dog Bizz run loose to locate the enemy. As the dog ran up hill he located the enemy who then opened fire. Bizz was killed but saved the unit by springing the ambush.
    03/22/69 Allen Mathews and his Scout Dog Rowdy 9A71 were on point behind a 557th Combat Tracker dog team and he and the unit they were supporting came under ambush fire while crossing a river. Sgt. "Smitty", the tracker handler was killed right in front of Mathews and as Allen and Rowdy climbed the river bank, the tracker dog jumped on Rowdy and bit his ear off. The Scout Dog team was evac'd via an ammo supply helicopter back to LZ Sally. Rowdy was able to eventually return to duty but soon after died of IHS disease. Mathews later was assigned Scout Dog LoBo X958.
    03/??/69 Thirty years later (4/14/99) Jeff Cahen, SP/4, A Co/1/501 Inf/101st recounts a story while walking 2nd man behind the SD handler (believed to be Richard Hong) and his dog Ebony as follows: "they were walking point with me close behind, in the A Shau, circa spring 1969 when the dog froze in her tracks refusing to go any further. To this day I still believe she stopped us from walking into an ambush that day I will never forget Ebony's beauty, friendliness and intelligence. She wasn't a big german shepard, probably 90 lbs. and completely black. She was one magnificent animal."
     
    Richard Hong and Ebony at LZ Sally
    Richard Hong and Ebony
    03/??/69 Sgt. Larry Proper was put in for a Bronze Star W/V.
    SP4 Gordon Brackett was put in for a Silver Star.
    SP4 Richard Hong was put in for a Bronze Star W/V.
    ??/69 Rockets explode outside platoon area. Wahl remembers sitting outside his barracks tent, hearing the whoosh, seeing the first rocket explode and then bolting into the conduit bunker. McCrary is drinking a beer and playing poker. Allen is in the crapper and exits post haste. Sgt. Selix is in the shower and dives into the mud. One of the rockets is a dud and "thunks" into the road outside the perimeter.
    03/??/69 John Carter takes the Graduate Record Exam (GRE) at Da Nang (China Beach) as part of his application requirements for Graduate School.
    03/31/69 Platoon Monthly Action Report items:
  • Monthly Summary: Search: 238, Ambush: 18, Recon: 38, Total Scout Dog Team Support Days: 170 Scout Dog Alerts credited with 16 enemy KIA
  • Commander's Comments: (1Lt Roberto Miller) Off-leash teams of Taylor and Socks performed well in the field and that support from the units and Bde Staff has been outstanding.
    • April 1969
    04/69 Jonathan Wahl and Tom Corsello watch as Flexible delivers puppies in the back of the CP tent. Puppies are clearly part German Shepherd.
    04/01/69 Jonathan Wahl flies down to the Da Nang China Beach USO for Passover services and some beach time. Billeting is at the China Beach R&R Center.
     
    04/13/69 Gary Gene Detrick was KIA in Thua Thien Province from hostile ground fire and other explosive device - possibly a command-detonated mine. His dog Princess #1M20 (formerly Hicks' dog) was also killed. George "Sam" Bowers was on an adjacent hillside supporting another unit and witnessed the explosion. Ronnie McCrary had just traded dogs and missions with Detrick and Gary went on Ronnie's mission while Ronnie waited to go on the next one.
      Detrick casualty info Gary Detrick Purple Heart

    Lt. Miller conducts a short memorial service for Gary in the platoon area the following morning. He asks Rich Leonard to write a prayer for Miller to read. Leonard's prayer for Gary was read as follows:

    "Our Father in Heaven, we have gathered here this morning to pay our final respects to one of our fellow men, Gary G. Dietrick (sic). Father, we all knew Gary and even though he had only been in our unit for five weeks, we loved him and respected him as a fellow comrade-in-arms.

    Father in Heaven, the death of this young man has brought grief to us, the members of the 47th Inf. Plat. and to the members of his Family. We ask thee to bless the Dietrick family in their hours of need. Comfort them and help them to realize that Gary's sacrifice was for a worthy cause, that of freedom for the people of the Republic of South Viet Nam.

    Bless us, Father, as members of the 47th Inf. Plat. that the memory of Gary G. Dietrick and his sacrifice will give us the courage and determination to carry on and accomplish our purpose here in this land.

    Father in Heaven, we are grateful for the many blessings of life Thou has granted us and we ask Thee to watch over us and protect us while we are here in Viet Nam.

    These favors and blessings we humbly pray for. In the name of Thy son Jesus Christ,

    Amen"

    View Gary Detrick's gravesite in Lima, OH.

    04/14/69 PFC Steve Bowers arrives at the 47th as a replacement handler after spending his first few weeks in country at Long Binh. Bowers is assigned off leash Scout Dog Prince and begins two weeks of training before going out in the field.
    04/24/69 Heaviest bombing raid to date in the Vietnam War. U.S. B-52's dropped nearly 3000 tons of bombs on enemy positions near the Cambodian border Northwest of Saigon.
    04/26/69 Rusty Allen and Rich Leonard complete their tour and return to the States for processing out of the Army. Rusty re-enlists in 1970 and returns to Vietnam in November to serve with the 59th IPSD as Training NCO. He completed his second tour in September, 1971.
    04/30/69 U.S. troop levels peak at 543,400. There have been 33,641 Americans killed by now, a total greater than the Korean War.
    04/30/69 Platoon Monthly Action Report items:
  • Scout Dog Sig #K036 alerted on an enemy village at 500 meters
  • Search 170, Ambush: 33, Recon: 64, Perimeter Ptl: 5. Total Scout Dog Team Suport Days: 211. Weapons found: 10 SKS, 2 AK 47, 10 Rockets, 35 RPG Rounds, 2000 AK Rounds, 13 2.57 Rockets, 175 82MM Rounds, 1 1/4 Ton Trucks, 9 French MG, 1 .30 Cal MG, 2 RPG Launchers. Scout Dog Alerts credited with 10 enemy KIA.
  • KIA WIA HOSP SICK
    Handlers 1 1 1 0
    Dogs 2 1 0 0
  • Commander's Comments (1LT Roberto Miller): This unit has been put in for the Valorous Unit Citation by the 1/502 Inf Abn. Also the Meritorious Unit Award by the Commanding Officer of this unit.
    • May 1969
    05/??/69 SGT Jonathan Harraden returns to Bangkok for his 2nd R&R. Lt. Miller was going to return the R&R allocation because noone had enough money to go. Jonathan had $350 saved up and happily accepted.
    05/??/69 Dan Barnett joins the unit from the 44th IPSD. Dan later served as Platoon Sergeant.
    05/08/69 SP4 Gordon Brackett returns from the hospital and reports for full duty.
    05/09/69 SP4 Ken Hudson begins training as replacement Platoon Clerk.
    05/10/69 SGT's Jonathan Wahl and Jonathan Harraden drive LT Roberto Miller to Phu Bai to catch a flight down to Bien Hoa on the 11th. Miller will go on R&R to Sydney, Australia. They all stay overnight at the 175th Vet Detachment, drink beer, and Wahl and Harraden say goodbye to LT Miller, since they will have returned to the States by the time he gets back to Sally.
    05/11/69 On their drive back from Phu Bai Wahl and Harraden tour the famous Citadel in Hue, viewing the many temples and gardens which remain despite the firece fighting during the Tet Offensive in January and February of 1968..
    05/14/69 An eight point Vietnam peace plan was proposed by President Nixon. It included pullout of most foreign troops within a year and elections supervised by an international body. The offer is rejected by Hanoi.
    05/20/69 U.S. and South Vietnam troops captured Hamburger Hill in the A Shau Valley near Hue after ten days of bloody battle. The hill was abandoned May 27 and later reoccupied by North Vietnam troops. It is the beginning of the end for America in Vietnam as Washington now orders MACV Commander Gen. Creighton Abrams to avoid such encounters in the future. 'Hamburger Hill' is the last major search and destroy mission by U.S. troops during the war. Small unit actions will now be used instead.
      Freedom Bird TicketDEROS/ETS Sign at Bien Hoa
    05/23/69 Jonathan Wahl and Jonathan Harraden approach their ETS dates and receive Certificates of Service and Thanks (click here to view) from the 101st Airborne's 2nd Brigade. They fly from Phu Bai to Bien Hoa to catch their Freedom Bird back to the States. Plane leaves from Tan Son Nhut and stops in Japan for refueling and, after unexpectedly meeting the Hubbles (who were returning home from the 45th IPSD), the two Jonathans miss the call and the plane takes off, leaving them stranded wearing jungle fatigues in the airport. Jonathans wait four hours and catch a military dependents flight which stops in Midway and Honolulu before landing at Travis Air Force Base in California. Jonathans take a bus to Oakland Army Base where they spend the next 24 hours processing out of the Army and then board flights from San Francisco back to the East Coast.
    05/31/69 Handlers Ron Bullock, Phil Rousch, and James Cox arrive at the 47th. Cox brings Scout Dog Cider 05M6 with him from Bien Hoa.
    05/31/69 Platoon Monthly Action Report items:
  • Search: 44, Ambush: 3, Recon: 7, Perimeter Ptl: 12. Total Scout Dog Team Support Days: 75
  • Commander's Comments (1LT Roberto Miller): Rowdy is now at the 936th Vet Hosp. with IHS. The decrease of missions in this month is mostly due to the end of the Bde. Operation in the A-Shau. The quality of canine replacements is still very poor but somewhat improving. This platoon has been inspected by Division CMMT. Guidelines on how to inspect Dog Units should be put out by USARV because Division Personnel don't have an understanding of our capabilities and we are inspected the same as an Infantry Company.
    • June 1969
     
    06/01/69 Scout Dog Socks #X889 working off-leash became MIA.
    06/04/69 Scout Dog Rowdy #9A71 died from IHS.
    06/10/69 Lt. James Bradshaw along with replacement handler James Adams arrive at the 47th.
    06/11/69 The Army Times edition dated June 11, 1969 tells the story of a 47th Scout Dog by the name of Sarge X052 who goes AWOL. Sarge and SP4 Ronnie McCrary were working with Alpha Co. 1st Bn, 502d Infantry near Fire Base Veghel, as Ronnie recalled as follows:
    "We were on a small hill when he alerted to something in the stream at the bottom of the slope. I didn't have a leash on him and he took off down to the stream." When McCrary reached the bottom of the hill Sarge was gone. "I called and called but he did not come back. It was like he'd vanished."

    McCrary stayed with A Company and came back into Fire Base Birmingham with the unit two days later. From there he went back to LZ Sally. "We figured Sarge was gone for good. Three days after being lost, Sarge reappeared outside the gate of Fire Base Bastogne barking his head off. They let him in where he was turned over to the 58th Scout Dog Platoon who returned him to the 47th Scout Dog Platoon where he belonged."

    06/12/69 Scout Dog Fellow #OK88 KIA.
    06/17/69 Sergeant Larry Proper receives the Bronze Star Medal with "V" Device for "... heroism in ground combat against a hostile force in the Republic of Vietnam on 21 March 1969... in support of the 1st Battalion, 502nd Infantry, 101st Airborne Division."
    06/30/69 Platoon Monthly Action Report items:
  • Search: 53, Ambush: 27, Recon: 22. Total Scout Dog Team Support Days: 121. Scout Dog Alerts credited with 2 enemy KIA, 11 weapons found ammunition and 650 pounds of rice.
  • KIA WIA HOSP SICK
    Handlers 0 0 1 0
    Dogs 2 0 1 0
  • Commander's Comments (1LT Roberto Miller): Missions are still slow due to change in Division Organization. Good month. Gave a good briefing to the 1/327th Inf.
    • July 1969
    07/01/69 SP4 George S. Bowers WIA.
    07/01/69 PFC Ronald J. Bullock WIA.

    In an email dated 05/20/2010 handler James Cox recalled the following about the incident:

    " ... Ron replaced me on my first mission and then took an RPG a few hours afterward. If he had not had head wounds they would have send (sic) him to Japan but instead they send him to a hospital ship.Thirty days later I saw him walking up the perimeter road at LZ Sally returning to duty with the 47th. About six months later while I was in the field Ron went on sick call with head aches and they send him to a hospital in Japan. I DEROS'ed before he got back home."

    Webmaster's note: Ron Bullock was shot to death on May 19, 2010 by an FBI agent at MacDill Air Force Base, Tampa, Florida, after investigators say he lunged at the agent with a knife. See this May 20, 2010 Tampa Tribune article for further details.

    07/08/69 The very first U.S. troop withdrawal occurs as 800 men from the 9th Infantry Division are sent home. The phased troop withdrawal will occur in 14 stages from July 1969 through November 1972.
    07/18/69 Senator Ted Kennedy drives his car off a bridge on Chappaquiddick Island off Martha's Vineyard, killing his young passenger, Mary Jo Kopechne.
    07/20/69 Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin piloting NASA spacecraft Apollo 11 become the first men to land on the surface of the moon: "Houston, Tranquility Base here, the Eagle has landed." The plaque on the lunar module descent stage contains the inscription: "Here Men From Planet Earth First Set Foot Upon the Moon. July 1969 A.D. We Came In Peace For All Mankind."
    Apollo 11 Moon Landing
    07/??/69 Scout Dog Rusty #8X54 evacuated to 936th with IHS.
    07/31/69 1LT Roberto L. Miller turns over command of the 47th IPSD to 2LT James M. Bradshaw.
    07/31/69 Platoon Monthly Action Report items:
  • Search: 56, Ambush: 36, Recon 23, Total Scout Dog Team Support Days: 92.
  • KIA WIA HOSP SICK
    Handlers 0 2 2 0
    Dogs 0 0 0 1
  • Commander's Comments (2LT James Bradshaw): Missions picked up considerably toward end of month. This platoon is qualifying all teams to rappel from helicopters. Assumption of command has been very smooth. Morale in the platoon is very high. I enjoy working with the 2nd Bde. and assistance from Bde staff has been outstanding.

    RVN Coins: 1964 10 Dong, 1966 5 Dong
    RVN Coins

    • August 1969
    08/??/69 James M. Bradshaw promoted to 1LT.
    08/10/69 Charles Manson and other members of his cult murder actress Sharon Tate and six others in a horrible event that was referred to as "Helter Skelter."
    08/15/69 A week long Rock Festival known as Woodstock begins.
    08/31/69 Platoon Monthly Action Report items:
  • Search 84, Ambush: 21, Recon: 27, Perimeter Ptl: 6. Total Scout Dog Team Support Days: 103.
  • Commander's Comments (1LT. Bradshaw): PFC Roush was working with B/2/502 when his dog Shep #69A3 alerted on a bunker complex. The complex yielded:
    Weapons: 10 SKS, 6 AK, 1 Chi Com heavy MG, 1 Pistol
    Ammunition: 3,500 SK Rounds, 1,000 Rounds 7.62MM, 12 RPD, 25 Mortar Rounds
    Explosives: 3-4 thousand Feet of Det-Cord, Electric Firing Devices, Satchel Charges,
    Mines: 18 Anti-Personnel Mines, 10 Tank Mines
    Clothing: 20 NVA Uniforms, Assorted Civilian Clothing
    Misc: Radio (with accessories), 10 Gas Masks, 200 Pounds of Food, Medical Supplies, Documents
    • September 1969
    09/??/69 SP4 Lamar wounded by 60mm mortar fragments while in an NDP. He was sent to the 95th Evac at Da Nang.
    09/02/69 Ho Chi Minh dies of a heart attack at age 79. He is succeeded by Le Duan, who publicly reads the last will of Ho Chi Minh urging the North Vietnamese to fight on "until the last Yankee has gone."
    09/??/69 William L. Huskie carries his Scout Dog Little Joe 223M who had been hit by small arms fire for eight hours until they can get to a place where they can get a Medical Evacuation helicopter to take the dog for treatment. A newspaper article of an unknown publisher and date (estimated to be approximately September 1969) recounts the story as follows:
    While supporting the 1st Bn, 502nd Airborne Infantry William L. Huskie and his Scout Dog Little Joe 223M come under sniper fire. Little Joe is hit by two rounds in the side that would have hit Huskie if Little Joe had not acted as a shield. The incident hapened at 9AM in the morning but due to the thick jungle a Medivac could not be accomplished. Huskie carries Little Joe until 5:00PM that evening when they are evacuated for medical aid. Little Joe recovers and his handler comments as follows: "There is no doubt in my mind that Little Joe saved my life today plus a hundred other times by sniffing out the enemy before they spotted us." Huskie said "If I could, I'd take him home with me and treat him like a King. Joe deserves it."
    09/16/69 Scout Dog Alex, 0K64, was KIA by small arms fire outside of Phu Bai. 1969. His body was not recovered.
    09/30/69 Platoon Monthly Action Report items:
  • Search: 120, Ambush: 61, Recon: 43, Cordon Perimeter Patrol: 20. Total Scout Dog Team Support Days: 150. Scout Dog Alerts credited with 1 enemy KIA and the find of 1 Rucksack, 6 82mm Rounds, 1 AK-47
  • KIA WIA HOSP SICK
    Handlers 0 1 1 0
    Dogs 0 0 0 0
    • October 1969
    10/15/69 The first Vietnam Moritorium Day was was observed by millions with prayer vigils, candlelight processions, mass meetings, and black armbands. President Nixon ignored it. Vice President Agnew on October 19 called Protest leaders "an effete corps of impudent snobs."
    10/15/69 Fritz 4M69 KIA. Fritz was working off-leash on a trail when he suddenly stopped. His handler SP4 Adams called an alert and told his infantry patrol unit to get down. At the same time Fritz took one more step and a command-detonated claymore mine exploded. The dog was working approximately 50 meters ahead of the point element and was killed while Jim Adams received minor leg wounds from wood shrapnel. An infantryman immediately behind Adams was killed. Fritz was written up in the Stars and Stripes and given credit for saving 4-6 lives.
      Stars and Stripes article
    10/16/69 The Amazin' New York Mets top the Baltimore Orioles 5-3 to win the World Series in five games.
    10/28/69 Charges that an illegal war in Laos was being conducted without congressional knowledge or consent were leveled against the administration.
    10/31/69 Platoon Monthly Action Report items:
  • Search: 81, Ambush: 41, Recon: 60, Outpost: 14, Total Scout Dog Team Support Days: 112.
  • KIA WIA HOSP SICK
    Handlers 0 0 0 0
    Dogs 1 0 0 0
    • November 1969
    11/03/69 Nixon said that the secret U.S. peace proposal had been rejected by the North Vietnamese. Nixon asked the nation to support his plans to "Vietnamize" the war, that is, encourage Vietnam to pursue the war on its own, and withdraw U.S. troops.
      Richard M. Nixon
    11/11/69 Pro-American demonstrations in support of U.S. policy in Vietnam by U.S. citizens whom President called "the great silent majority" mark this years Veterans Day observances.
    11/??/69 Jim Adams contracts malaria and spends 1 week in the Phu Bai Army hospital.
    11/14/69 The second Vietnam Moratorium Day began with a long single-file "March Against Death" in Washington D.C. On the next day 250,000 people marched there against the war. A San Francisco protest against U.S. participation in the war drew 100,000 demonstrators.
    11/??/69 Charles Wade Franks and Ronnie F. McCrary "panel" SFC James Hood's hootch using ammo boxes.

    SFC James Hood in his "new" quarters
    SFC James Hood

    11/20/69 Paul D. Kraay arrives for duty at the 47th.
    11/20/69 Henry Cabot Lodge resigned as chief U.S. negotiator at the Paris peace talks.
    11/30/69 Platoon Monthly Action Report items:
  • Search: 9, Ambush: 3, Recon: 6, Perimeter Ptl: 8. Total Scout Dog Team Support Days: 23.
  • KIA WIA HOSP SICK
    Handlers 0 0 1 0
    Dogs 0 0 0 1
  • Commander's Comments (1LT. Bradshaw): During the month of November, the 2nd Bde. had only two Battalions forward, and operations were defensive and securing in nature consequently commitments were low for the month.
    • December 1969
    12/01/69 The U.S. government held its first draft lottery since World War II.
    12/15/69 President Nixon announced U.S. troop strength would be cut by 110,000 to 434,000 by April 12, 1970.
    12/25/69 Bill Sawyer recalls in a 12/20/03 e-mail :
    "(I) was at the Minh Thanh Special Forces camp. After watching Bob Hope on AFVN tv {had seen him live at Lai Khe couple days before}, (his show was live from Tan San Nhut) then went into Cambodia (whoops, we of course weren't really there!) walking point for 200 +/- CIDG's and 3 green hats. The show included Neil Armstrong, Miss World, Connie Stevens, The Gold Diggers, and Teresa Graves."
    12/31/69 By year's end, America's fighting strength in Vietnam has been reduced by 115,000 men. 40,024 Americans have now been killed in Vietnam. Over the next few years, the South Vietnamese Army will be boosted to over 500,000 men in accordance with 'Vietnamization' of the war in which they will take over the fighting from Americans.
    12/31/69 Platoon Monthly Action Report items:
  • Search: 60, Ambush: 17, Recon: 67, Village Search: 6. Total Scout Dog Team Support Days: 104.
  • Commander's Comments (1LT. Bradshaw): Commitments picked up considerably toward the end of the month. The 2nd Bde. S-3 has been very helpful in the commitment and proper utilization of Scout Dog Teams. With the exception of recent replacements, all teams of the 47th IPSD are rapel qualified.
  • Remarks of Reviewing Officer (Frank H. Scott, MAJ. INF., S-3): The 47th IPSD is providing outstanding support of up to 15 dog teams to the infantry units of this Brigade. The professionalism displayed by the platoon members has resulted in increased utilization during the past month. Lt. Bradshaw has all working teams rappel qualified and he has generated increased interest and enthusiasm within his unit.
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