Throughout history there are multiple examples of the use of animals for war. And to be more specific, as weapons of war itself. Even germ warfare has roots that go back beyond antiquity, as Adrienne Mayor brilliantly exposed in her fantastic book Greek Fire, Poison Arrows &Scorpion Bombs.
But in modern times, technology has given rise to crazy, ridiculous or simply curious projects, which had different types of animals as protagonists.
Above all, the Second World War and the Cold War produced absurdities like the ones we collect here.
1. Pigeon Guided Missiles
Before the current guided missiles were developed, the US Army developed a plan that consisted of introducing pigeons inside the casing of a missile. The birds were to guide him to his goal. To do this, three were introduced into a special corpatiment located in the head of the missile, which had three screens as windows.
Once the missile got close to its target, the birds, previously trained to recognize it, would start pecking at the screens guiding the missile in the right direction. The question was to get the pigeons to focus on the target on the little screens.
2. Nuclear bombs with chickens
In 1957, at the height of the Cold War, the British came up with a plan to bury nuclear bombs in different places in Germany, in case the Soviets happened to invade Europe.
But there was a problem, the low German temperatures meant that the electronic circuits of the bombs could fail. So they came up with a wacky idea. Put live chickens in the pumps with food for a week.
The heat of their bodies would ensure the maintenance of the circuits. Fortunately, the project was never put into practice.
3. Anti-tank dogs
This was an idea carried out by the Soviets during World War II. They placed explosives on the backs of dogs, which they trained to look for food under the tanks. Once the dog was under the tank, the detonator was activated, producing the explosion. According to Soviet propaganda, up to 300 German tanks would have fallen victim to this system.
But according to other sources they were a complete disaster, since when they were fired upon by the tanks, the dogs returned in fear to the Soviet ranks, where they exploded. Apparently the use of these dogs began to decline after 1942, but some continued to be trained until at least 1996.
4. Anti-communications hawks
The British trained a small number of peregrine falcons during World War II. Their mission was to intercept German carrier pigeons trying to leave England.
At least two of them were captured alive. What is not very clear is how they distinguished the German pigeons from their own.
5. Incendiary bombs with bats
The Americans developed this type of bombs to be used against Japan in World War II. Each bomb contained about 40 hibernating bats, each carrying an incendiary device.
Once the bomb was dropped and the bats left their state, they looked for a place to take refuge. The device then detonated, starting a fire.
That way thousands, if not millions of fires could be started with a relatively small number of bombs. They were never used.
6. The spy cat
The CIA spent about 25 million dollars (from the 1960s) on Operation Acoustic Kitten to implant recording sensors and a receiving antenna in a cat. They trained the cat to endure hunger and avoid distractions.
But the feline died during his first mission at the Soviet embassy in Washington, hit by a taxi, something that was surely decisive in canceling the project.