Cats of World War 1
During WWI, it is estimated that 500,000 cats were brought to the trenches, and many more served on Navy ships.
They helped the military by killing rats and other vermin that spread disease and were sometimes used as gas detectors.
An estimated 500,000 cats served in World War I.
In the trenches of the Western front, there were serious problems with rats
One cat saved a soldier’s life in a more dramatic fashion.
Pitouchi had been born in the trenches. His mother had been killed when he was a kitten, and he’d been adopted by a Belgian soldier, Lt. Lekeux.
Lekeux was hiding in a shell hole, sketching the enemy’s artillery works. A German soldier on patrol spotted him and called out to his comrades.
Pitouchi “jumped out of the hole onto a piece of timber,as frightened as he was, Pitouchi was not hit, and he jumped back into the hole with his beloved Lekeux.”
The Germans, figuring they’d made a mistake, laughed it off and went on their way.
