This week, yours truly is changing gears a bit to bring awareness to a wonderful place that I discovered last week. The Michigan War Dog Memorial is located in South Lyon in Oakland County, Michigan, on the southwest corner of 11 Mile Road and Milford Road. Here is the final resting place for dozens (possibly more than 100) dogs who served in the United States Armed Forces since the 1930s. (I don’t have an exact count, but let’s just say that there are a LOT of markers.)

The site was originally known as the ‘Happy Hunting Grounds Pet Cemetery’ and was founded by the Elkow family in 1936. In 1946, after news of how many lives had been saved by military dogs, funds were raised to erect a large granite monument dedicated to ‘The War Dog’ which was placed on the site.

Burials continued at the site, but stopped sometime in the 1980s. The cemetery became neglected and overgrown and seemed destined to disappear like many old cemeteries do.

However…

In 2010, a group of citizens, including a United States Army veteran, found out about the cemetery’s existence and decided to visit it. When they found the site, to their dismay, it was in deplorable shape–completely overtaken by brush and foliage, with only a few stones visible, including the granite War Dog memorial stone. The group decided to form a committee to restore the site, and, along with many volunteers from local military groups and dog clubs, began the cleanup. In November 2011, a dedication ceremony was held at the cemetery.

Restoration continues to this day. The group is now established as a non-profit and accepts monetary donations as well as volunteerism. Burials are once again taking place in the cemetery, which now includes service dogs and police dogs. The most recent burial took place this past October 4th for a dog named Quinn. In 2012, Michigan Governor Rick Snyder signed a bill proclaiming March 13th as K-9 Veterans’ Day. (I bet you didn’t know about this–I certainly didn’t.) A ceremony commemorating the day takes place at the site each year on that day, with a full military color guard. (You can watch this year’s ceremony on YouTube.)

I visited the site myself last week and was amazed at the size of it–row after row of markers. Most of them are small flat rectangular blocks with the dog’s name, age, and death date. There are some more elaborate upright markers, some of which appear to be for household pets (which may still be retired military/police dogs). The oldest markers that I saw were from about 1936. The site now has a big sign right at the intersection of the two roads and the granite War Dog memorial stone now has a statue of a German Shepherd atop, and flags flying, appropriate for a military cemetery. But it’s obvious that there is still work to be done. Some of the oldest markers are crumbling and should be replaced. And just because Mother Nature is the way she is, always trying to take over, clearing foliage will be ongoing.

If you would like to read more about the Michigan War Dog Memorial or would like to contact this dedicated group, please visit the website at www.mwdm.org.