I got sucked into a two hour Wikipedia link-hop through something in the “Army guys who look like crap in the airport” thread (isn’t it weird when you realize that militaries in other countries have their own slang?) and I ran into this picture, which is of Blue-White dress uniforms and Drum Corps uniforms. So my question is, when do you have to put the dog in a dress uniform? Does the dog have other uniforms? (Khakis?) What exactly is the dog for? Is he a Marine? Does he have a rank, and if so can you tell from the uniform? Is he some sort of combat dog? An explosive sniffer? (No offense to bulldogs, but I don’t think I’ve ever seen one as a service dog, which is why I ask in the first place - I guess it wouldn’t be weird if it were a German shepherd or something.) The caption totally pretends there is not a little uniformed dog in the picture. Why doesn’t the dog have to wear a hat?
Of course, no offense to our proud and loyal dogs in uniform - I’m sure the dog in the picture is less likely to pee on the floor than many Marines I have known.
The picture is of Marines at the Marine Barracks in Washington, DC - home of the Marine Band and Silent Drill Team. Accompanying them is “Chesty” the official mascot of the Barracks. Named after Lt. General Puller - nicknamed Chesty for his barrel chest and the countless medals which covered such, Chesty has become probably the best known Marine. He appears in countless photos and memorabilia.
The current Chesty is Chesty XIII - a private that assumed duty this summer. Chesty XII - by now a sergeant, then retired after “40 dog years of service.”
And note that while the picture is a drawing, not a photograph, the artist has still rendered the bulldog’s tongue hanging out. Is drool a part of the officially mandated Marine Corps dog uniform?
The Bulldog is from a WWI poster about the Marines at Belleau Wood, where the Germans supposedly called the troops they faced “Teufelhundnt” (someone will be along shortly to correct my German), or “Devil Dog”. The poster was a Bulldog chasing a dachshund in a spiked helmet and iron cross.
The first bulldog mascot was in 1922, in Quantico.
ETA, there is more than one dog in uniform, Chesty is just the most famous. Cpl. Molly is at San Diego.
I don’t pretend to be an expert in Marine mascots - I was a Navy man. But I did recognize the Marine Barracks - I worked for years at the Washington Navy Yard just a few blocks away.
IMHO, every first time visitor to Washington should try to visit the Barracks, especially for an Evening Parade.
Not a Marine, nor an American, but I think that Chesty lacks a “cover,” not a hat.
Trivia time! The USMC (formed 1775) cap badge features the globe with North and South America visible; the Royal Marines’ (formed 1664) badge shows Europe, Africa and Asia.
…So between them, the Marines have pretty much got it covered.
The bulldogs are not official USMC mascots, they are mascots of distinct posts or commands. Chesty is for Marine Barracks 8th & I St, Washington, DC, and Cpl Molly is for the Marine Corps Recruit Depot, San Diego, CA. There is also a bulldog mascot at MCRD Parris Island, SC, “Hummer”.
The dogs the Germans were referring to were Bull Mastiffs, which were kept as guard dogs by French villagers. The mastiffs were vicious, and the Germans compared the Marines to the dogs.
