Humans have used animals as weapons in war for thousands of years. Many of these plots have been violent and, frankly, disastrous for both man and animal.
Elephants were among the first war fauna used , most famously by Hannibal . Source : Wikimedia
Humans have used animals as artillery for 1000 of age . 2,000 old age ago , Hanniballed the Carthaginian army riding war elephants to fight Rome . In answer , the Romans set pigs on fervour and let them run innocent through foe ranks to frighten the elephant .
In World War II , British Special Ops thought of stuffing bushed informer with explosive and spread them throughout Germany . They hoped that the Germans would foregather the rats and dispose of them in industrial furnaces , make explosion powerful enough to trigger catastrophic boiler failures . However , the Brits drop the plan after their first freight of explosive betrayer was intercepted by Nazi force in 1941 .
Elephants were among the first war animals used, most famously by Hannibal . Source:Wikimedia
Source : National Archives
War Animals: Bomb-Wielding Soviet…Dogs
set forth in 1930 , the Soviets began training dogs to blow up foe storage tank . Initially , the Russians render to teach the dogs to overlook turkey under armored combat vehicle and then return to their handlers . regrettably , the training was too complicated , and the hot dog frequently yield with the explosives still attach . in the end , the Soviets modify the dud to detonate on impingement , turning their dogs into unwilling cuspid kamikaze .
The Russian dog brigade . Source : Socyberty
dog-iron with the explosive harness and trigger attach . rootage : Prime Portal
Source:National Archives
According to prescribed Soviet record , the anti - tank dogs were highly successful , damaging around 300 German tanks . Yet once you depend past the propaganda , you ’ll see that the programme was in reality a failure . As it change by reversal out , your average barker ca n’t tell the difference between a German Panzer tank and a Soviet T-34 . Therefore , the dogs sometimes call for out Russian ordnance by fault . On other occasions , the heel were affright by gunfire and ran back to well-disposed trench .
The biggest misunderstanding the Russians made was using their own storage tank while trail the dog . Source : Today I Found Out
American Bat Bombs
One case shot could hold up to a thousand hibernating bats . Source : Wikipedia
Not to be outdo , the Americans also used animal as weapon in a plan known as squash racquet bombs . In 1942 , a tooth doctor key Lytle Adams come up with the idea and successfully set up it to President Roosevelt . Louis Fieser , discoverer of napalm , developed the incendiary devices that the bats carried . The army then created a bomb - forge case that housed a thousand bats at once . Ten bombers , each carrying a hundred scale , could have unleash one million bat bomb at the same clip .
Bat bombs were create to be released over Japan ’s Osaka Bay in Hope of causing thousands of co-occurrent diminished ardor , decimating Japanese infrastructure . The U. S. choose to practice Mexican loose - track bat because their numbers were plentiful , they could express heavy loads and they would n’t take food for thought while hole up . Lucky for the bats , the project was passed on to the Navy after escaped squash racket bombs burned down half of the Calsbad Army Airfield in 1943 . The Navy launch the labor on to the Marine Corps who eventually scrapped it altogether .
The Russian dog brigade. Source:Socyberty
In the end , the only damage get by bat bombs was on American territory . Source : Wikipedia
War Animals: Project Pigeon
From the thinker of far-famed American behaviorist B.F. Skinner came Project Pigeon – a plan to develop pigeon - guided missiles . Here ’s how it would work : one or more pigeon would be locked inside a projectile , and be trained to peck at an on - screen target that would keep the projectile on course . Skinner came up with this estimate in 1939 , and actually get funding from the National Defense Research Committee before they cancelled the programme in 1944 .
Skinner had previously done successful experiments to condition animal deportment . Source : Hack Education
The Navy revived the projection in 1948 , but cancel it again five years later . Source : Manifesta
Dog with the explosive harness and trigger attached. Source:Prime Portal
Source : Manifesta
The biggest mistake the Russians made was using their own tanks while training the dogs. Source:Today I Found Out
One canister could hold up to a thousand hibernating bats. Source:Wikipedia
In the end, the only damage caused by bat bombs was on American soil. Source:Wikipedia
Skinner had previously done successful experiments to condition animal behavior. Source:Hack Education
The Navy revived the project in 1948, but cancelled it again five years later. Source:Manifesta
Source:Manifesta
