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

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

Nazi Germany


After the National Socialists came to power in 1933, Germany saw a series of new and changing laws, some of which included animal welfare. 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. Animal welfare eventually became a top political issue within the Nazi state. The current animal laws in Germany are modified versions of those introduced by the Nazis.

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. 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. When the war ended, only 91 out of the zoos 15,000 animals had survived.

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. 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.

United Kingdom
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. 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.



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

As a result of the weak British war economy, the army lacked modern military vehicles. 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.

United Sates

 * http://www.archives.gov/publications/prologue/1996/fall/buddies.html
 * http://www.americanhumane.org/animals/programs/emergency-services/about-animal-emergency-services.html