Canine kisses in Kajaki
April 13th, 2012 | Afghanistan Animals Battle Rattle Embedded journalism Infantry Kajaki | Posted by James J. Lee
OBSERVATION POST SHRINE, Afghanistan – I miss my dog, but I didn’t realize how much until I met Camo, an improvised explosive detection dog. This little position on a hill overlooking the Taliban-held area of Zamindawar is referred to as a “static ambush position,” so Camo doesn’t get much of a chance to do her thing up here.
After sitting for hours at the feet of handler Lance Cpl. Richard Bissett as he stands post at one of the gun positions, Camo tears around the camp kicking up dust, sweeping water bottles of cots with her tail and getting lots of laughs from all the guys up here with her infectious energy.
She’s permanently attached to Bissett’s side, except for frequent stops to get a little attention from other members of the squad. Bissett will have to turn Camo over to a new handler this summer when he returns to Camp Lejeune, N.C., but until then she’s spreading morale to Third Squad, Second Platoon, in Alpha Company, 1st Battalion, 8th Marines.
1/12 Marines struggle with hornets, termites in Afghanistan
October 3rd, 2011 | Afghanistan Animals Infantry Kajaki | Posted by Dan Lamothe
An oriental hornet lies at the base of its nest after being sprayed with insecticide aboard Forward Operating Base Zeebrugge, Afghanistan, on Sept. 24. (Photo by Sgt. Justin J. Shemanski)
So, how’s your day going? Struggling with an infestation of gremlins in your life?
Echo Battery, 1st Battalion, 12th Marines, is. The artillery unit has been based at Forward Operating Base Zeebrugge in Afghanistan since May, providing protection to the Kajaki Dam, a major hydroelectric facility in northern Helmand province.
One of Zeebrugge’s more unpleasant quirks is its pests, which include oriental hornets and subterranean termites, according to a new Marine Corps news release. Insect problems are nothing new on deployment, but this one was apparently serious enough to merit attention from sailors serving in preventative medicine with II Marine Headquarters Group.
Some quick Google-fu led me to this Army fact sheet, which states the hornets can grow to nearly 1.5 inches.
“Oriental hornets can be a public health concern, since these large, aggressive insects are capable of inflicting multiple, painful bites and stings,” the fact sheet says. “These insects will establish colonies and forage for food and water in areas frequented by humans.”
Sounds swell. The hornets haven’t yet been introduced to the U.S., but are considered a risk to public health and agriculture, prompting inspections of military equipment, vehicles and aircraft for them, the fact sheet adds.
Parris Island’s new mascot
September 28th, 2011 | Animals | Posted by Tony Lombardo
There’s a new mascot at Marine Corps Recruit Depot Parris Island. He’s got what it takes to be a Marine, a depot spokesman said. What he doesn’t have is a name.
The 8-week-old English Bulldog arrived this month at the depot. His predecessor, Sgt. Archibald Hummer, died in his sleep on Sept. 7 at the age of 5.
The new puppy is described as both active and cute, said depot spokesman Sgt. Russell Midori.
“He definitely has what it takes, but it’s going to take some training to get him up to the standard,” Midori said.
The name of the new mascot is ultimately up to depot commander Brig. Gen. Lori Reynolds, Midori said, but the base is also taking suggestions via this Facebook post.
Some notable suggestions include “Dakota,” for Medal of Honor recipient Sgt. Dakota Meyer, and “Ira,” for Cpl. Ira Hayes, who took part in the second flag-raising on Iwo Jima immortalized by Joe Rosenthal’s photograph.
What would you name pup?
Massachusetts battalion takes over in Afghanistan
September 14th, 2011 | Animals Camp Leatherneck Infantry Reserve | Posted by Dan Lamothe
Sgt. Matthew Swan, of 1st Battalion, 25th Marines, shoots his rifle to battle sight zero at Camp Leatherneck, Afghanistan, on Sept. 5. (Photo by Petty Officer 2nd Class Jonathan Chandler)
As they say in the sports world, it’s time for a homer alert.
The unit from my home state — 1st Battalion, 25th Marines, out of Fort Devens, Mass. — has deployed to Afghanistan, taking over this week for 1st Battalion, 23rd Marines, out of Houston.
The Massachusetts battalion is part of the Marine Corps Reserve, and includes Marines from across New England. It has companies based out of Topsham, Maine; Londonderry, N.H.; Plainville, Conn.; and Fort Devens.
The unit will take over 1/23′s missions, which included providing security at a variety of forward operating bases, including Camp Leatherneck, the Corps’ main hub of operations in southern Afghanistan. That mission includes patrolling “Soak City,” a shantytown of squatters north of the base.
Smoke the Iraqi donkey tours the U.S.
May 16th, 2011 | Animals Battle Rattle Iraq | Posted by James Sanborn
Smoke the Iraqi donkey is on a publicity tour of the United States after making his first public appearance Sunday at a farm just outside of Warrenton, Va.
Smoke, the former 1st Marine Logistics Group mascot in Iraq, was the guest of honor at a bar-b-que hosted by Debbie and Alan Nash, polo enthusiasts and friends of retired Col. John Folsom, the Marine who fought for months to bring Smoke to the United States from Iraq via Turkey and Germany.
At the Nash’s place, Smoke got his first bath and was pampered with carrots and more grass than he likely ever saw near Fallujah.
By Monday he was in New York to appear on the TV circuit including Fox News, said Craig Pirtle who is on the board of director’s for Folsom’s non-profit organization Wounded Warriors Family Support. Folsom and Pirtle have also been contacted by Jimmy Kimmel Live and Folsom said the idea of a movie is being kicked around.
“I think at this point he is probably more famous than Shrek’s donkey,” Folsom said. “Colonel Potter of Mash had a horse, I have a donkey.”
For the back story on Smoke see the original Marine Corps Times story, “Smoke the donkey heading to the U.S.” our more recent blog post, “Smoke the Donkey, former Marine mascot, back in the U.S.”
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- Smoke still bears the luggage tag he wore during his trip from Iraq, through Turkey and Germany, to the United States. Photos by James K. Sanborn/Marine Corps Times
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- Smoke gets his first shower in the United States.
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- Smoke dries after his first bath in the United States.
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- Smoke air dries after his first shower in the United States.
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- Smoke strolls with retired Col. John Folsom at a property just outside of Warrenton, Va. on May 15.
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- Smoke wanders a field at the property of Alan and Debbie Nash, two polo enthusiasts who live near Warrenton, Va.
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- Smoke and Folsom reunited after being apart for more than two years.
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- Smoke, ever curious, investigated the shutter click of a camera.
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- Retired Col. John Folsom with Smoke at the donkey’s welcome to the United States party on May 15 outside of Warrenton, Va.
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- Retired Col. John Folsom poses with Smoke and Maj. Gen. Robert Ruark. Photo by
Smoke was adopted in 2008 in Iraq as the 1st Marine Logistics Group mascot at Camp Taqaddum, where Folsom was the camp commandant.
It was revealed at yesterday’s welcoming party that the idea for a donkey mascot all started with Maj. Gen. Robert Ruark who is now the Assistant Deputy Commandant for Installations and Logistics. At the time he was Folsom’s boss. The two were watching a comical video of Marines trying to wrangle a donkey which was sped up and played to the Benny Hill theme song. Ruark made an off-the-cuff, half-serious remark that it was funny and they should have a donkey.
Folsom took it as commander’s intent and ran with it, charging a sergeant at the base with finding a donkey. Folsom was awaken one day to the sound of smoke hee-hawing outside his hooch. Then Sgt. Juan Garcia, now a drill instructor at Marine Corps Recruit Depot San Diego, had tied smoke up for the colonel to find.
Ruark was surprised to find a donkey being kept on the base when he returned from a trip, but found that Smoke was a good fit. Standing regulations banned having animals, but a Navy psychologist sponsored Smoke by writing a six-page report that said he would make a good therapy animal. It worked and Smoke was allowed to stay. He boosted moral and became a topic of conversation between Marines and their children, some of whom thought smoke was the Shrek donkey.
Eventually Marines pulled out of Iraq and were forced to leave Smoke behind. But this October, Folsom began fighting to bring Smoke home. After months of tracking him down, wrangling him and transporting him to the United States through Turkey and Germany, Smoke finally arrives at JFK International Airport in New York on Thursday. He was held in quarantine until Saturday.
The entire ordeal was a complicated, difficult journey during which Terri Crisp, of SPCA International, helped Folsom by navigating red tape in Iraq and Turkey. Crisp has for years helped to bring dogs and cats to the United States under a program called Operation Baghdad Pups, but said Smoke was the largest animal she had ever worked to transport. It cost more than 18,000 just to ship Smoke, she said. The bill was picked up by SPCA International.
Ruark said he was amazed by the dedication Folsom had to Smoke.
“It was virtually a logistics miracle,” Ruark said at the Sunday bar-b-que. “John should be an honorary logistician.”
Folsom, a former CH-46 pilot, plans to transport Smoke to Nebraska. At first he will live at Take Flight Farms, an equine therapy facility where horses are used to help people , including wounded warriors, with varying ailments. But Smoke’s final duty station will be a retreat being built for wounded warriors and their families by Folsom’s non-profit. And Smoke’s whirlwind media tour could help raise money for the construction.
Smoke the Donkey, former Marine mascot, back in the U.S.
May 13th, 2011 | Animals Iraq | Posted by James Sanborn
Smoke the donkey, arrived in the United States Thursday and will be out of quarantine tomorrow. For those of you who don’t already know Smoke, he is an Iraqi donkey who was adopted by Marines at Camp Taqaddum, Iraq, in 2008.
He became the mascot of 1st Marine Logistics Group, but Marines were forced to abandon him when they pulled out. Retired Col. John Folsom, who was the camp commandant, never forgot about Smoke. Late last year he began working to bring him to Nebraska where Folsom runs Wounded Warriors Family Support, a non-profit that helps families of troops wounded or killed in combat.
Smoke’s 6,000-mile trip across the globe took him to Turkey and Germany and lasted more than a month. Folsom and Terri Crisp, who works for SPCA International, fought tooth and nail to get Smoke home, running into red tape and roadblocks the whole way.
For more details pick up next week’s Marine Corps Times on newsstands Monday.
Here are a few photos from Smokes globe-trotting journey that took him from Iraq, to Turkey, to Germany, to New York.
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- Smoke poses with troops in Iraq in 2008, while draped with 1st Marine Logistic Group’s crest. Courtesy of Col. John Folsom
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- Smoke in Iraq. Courtesy of Col. John Folsom
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- Smoke eating earlier this year at an SPCA International facility in northern Iraq. Courtesy of SPCA International
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- Smoke at an SPCA International facility in Iraq earlier this year. SPCA International also works to bring dogs and cats to the United States. Courtesy of SPCA International.
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- Veterinarians draw Smoke’s blood to screen him for disease so he could gain permission to enter the United States. Courtesy of SPCA International
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- Smoke is photographed by the media in Istanbul, Turkey. Courtesy of SPCA International.
Smoke the donkey, MLG mascot, cleared to enter Turkey
April 15th, 2011 | Animals Iraq | Posted by James Sanborn
Turkish authorities have granted Smoke the donkey, the former mascot for 1st Marine Logistics Group in Iraq, permission to enter Turkey at the Habur Gate checkpoint in northern Iraq.
Smoke’s former guardian, Col. John Folsom, has been fighting to bring Smoke home since October, but has run into one problem after another. First, he had to convince an Iraqi sheik to lower the $30,000 price tag arbitrarily put on the donkey. Then Smoke had to be wrangled and sent to Arbil from Fallujah. Finally, Folsom and the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals International had to lobby Turkish officials to allow Smoke to enter the country.
But finally, after weeks of negotiations, Turkey’s minister of agriculture has agreed to give Smoke safe passage on his way to the United States.
Smoke became 1st MLG’s mascot after a sergeant caught him roaming the Camp Taqaddum, just outside of fallujah, and tied him up outside Folsom’s tent. Folsom was the camp commandant at the time. Marines, who named him for his grey color and his affinity for cigarettes, were able to skirt regulations barring troops from keeping pets in a warzone after a Navy lieutenant supported designating him a therapy animal.
Marines were forced to abandon their beloved Iraqi-born mascot when they withdrew from Camp Taqaddum, near Fallujah, more than two years ago. But with the help of the SPCAI’s “Operation Baghdad Pups,” Smoke will soon be living in Nebraska where Folsom hopes Smoke can work at Wounded Warrior Family Support as a therapy animal for children. The non-profit organization, founded by Folsom, works to help the families of killed and wounded service members.
Smoke was originally slated for arrival in the United States in January. His exact date of arrival remains uncertain as he may have to pass through other countries and transit the Atlantic by plane as part of a special cargo delivery.
For the most recent updates on Smoke’s status check out his Facebook page with almost 200 followers.
Marines were forced to abandon their beloved Iraqi-born mascot when they withdrew from Camp Taqaddum, near Fallujah, more than two years ago. But the camp’s former commandant, retired Col. John Folsom, has been on a quest since October to bring the donkey to Nebraska.
With the help of the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals International’s “Operation Baghdad Pups,” Smoke, as of Jan. 19, was waiting to hop a flight out of Arbil, Iraq.
Smoke became 1st MLG’s mascot after a sergeant caught him roaming the base and tied him up outside Folsom’s tent. Marines, who named him for his grey color and his affinity for cigarettes, were able to skirt regulations barring troops from keeping pets in a warzone after a Navy lieutenant supported designating him a therapy animal.
Tracking Smoke down proved challenging. A local sheik who works with U.S. forces said Smoke was in possession of a family who asked for $30,000 for the animal. Folsom scoffed at the amount, and the sheik eventually agreed to obtain the animal free of charge.
Folsom hopes Smoke can work at Wounded Warrior Family Support as a therapy animal for children. The non-profit organization, founded by Folsom, works to help the families of killed and wounded service members.
Smoke the donkey, the former mascot for 1st Marine Logistics Group in Iraq, could be in the U.S. by the end of January.
Marines were forced to abandon their beloved Iraqi-born mascot when they withdrew from Camp Taqaddum, near Fallujah, more than two years ago. But the camp’s former commandant, retired Col. John Folsom, has been on a quest since October to bring the donkey to Nebraska.
With the help of the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals International’s “Operation Baghdad Pups,” Smoke, as of Jan. 19, was waiting to hop a flight out of Arbil, Iraq.
Smoke became 1st MLG’s mascot after a sergeant caught him roaming the base and tied him up outside Folsom’s tent. Marines, who named him for his grey color and his affinity for cigarettes, were able to skirt regulations barring troops from keeping pets in a warzone after a Navy lieutenant supported designating him a therapy animal.
Tracking Smoke down proved challenging. A local sheik who works with U.S. forces said Smoke was in possession of a family who asked for $30,000 for the animal. Folsom scoffed at the amount, and the sheik eventually agreed to obtain the animal free of charge.
Folsom hopes Smoke can work at Wounded Warrior Family Support as a therapy animal for children. The non-profit organization, founded by Folsom, works to help the families of killed and wounded service members.
Bored Marine Video: Marine eats massive desert bug
April 14th, 2011 | Animals Bored Marine Video | Posted by Dan Lamothe
It has been a few weeks since we’ve posted a good Bored Marine Video to kick the weekend off the right way. Why not start now?
Up this week: one of the most disturbing things I’ve seen all month. Our intrepid Marine hero decides to make good on a promise to eat a freakishly large moth. And by “freakishly large,” I mean, “beefy enough to roast on a spit.” The humanity! It’s still squirming!
A slight warning: the video has a little bit of salty language, as you might expect when something like this happens. Really, though, the Marines here are quite supportive of the endeavor:
I’ve heard of having butterflies in the stomach, but this is ridiculous.
Meet Cpl. Monster, FAST Company Europe
March 17th, 2011 | Animals The Sgt. Major of the Marine Corps | Posted by Dan Lamothe
As I’ve touched on before, Sergeant Major of the Marine Corps Carlton Kent visited several Marine commands in Europe last week, including one in Naval Station Rota, Spain.
That would be home to the headquarters of Fleet Anti-Terrorism Security Team Europe, better known as one of the Corps’ FAST companies. And like many Marine commands, the unit has its very own mascot: Cpl. Monster.
An ornery, but lovable English bulldog, Monster has lived at the FAST headquarters at Rota for years. I met him while Kent received a classified brief on FAST Company’s operations.
As you can tell from the photograph above, Monster isn’t shy.
Happy Holidays from Battle Rattle
December 23rd, 2010 | Animals | Posted by Dan Lamothe
Cpl. Chesty XIII stands at attention during a Dec. 3 holiday party inside Crawford Hall at Marine Barracks Washington, D.C. (Photo by Cpl. Bobby J. Yarbrough)
With Christmas upon us, staffing at Marine Corps Times is a bit thin right now, and it’ll grow even thinner over the next few days.
That means it’s more than time to extend good wishes to all of our readers during the holidays. Posting on this site may be a bit thin here for about a week, but we wish each and every one of you well.
Happy Holidays!