After being ‘missing in action’ for thirteen months, Sarbi was wrangled back into friendly hands by a US Special Forces soldier. A month later, Sarbi and Corporal D were reunited at Tarin Kowt, in front of the Australian Prime Minister and the commanding US general in Afghanistan. Sarbi is the most decorated dog in the history of the Australian military, having been awarded all the medals that Caesar receives in Caesar the War Dog.
ENDAL
Endal was a sandy-coloured male labrador who was trained by the UK charity Canine Partners. He went on to qualify as a service dog and, in the late 1990s, was partnered with Allen Parton, a former Chief Petty Officer with Britain’s Royal Navy. Confined to a wheelchair from injuries sustained during the Gulf War, initially Allen couldn’t speak, so he taught Endal more than a hundred commands using hand signals.
In 2009, Endal suffered a stroke and had to be put down. During his lifetime, Endal became famous in Britain, receiving much media coverage and many awards for his dedicated and loyal service to his master. A young labrador named EJ (Endal Junior) took Endal’s place as Allen Parton’s care dog.
CAIRO
Cairo is a long-nosed Belgian Malinois shepherd with the United States Navy SEALs (Sea, Air and Land teams), a unit within the US Special Operations Command. He was trained for insertion by helicopter, and by parachute, strapped to his handler, just like Caesar is in this book. In 2011, Cairo was part of SEAL Team 6, which landed by helicopter in a compound in Pakistan to deal with Osama bin Laden, the leader of the terrorist organisation Al Qaeda. Cairo’s job was to go in first to locate explosives in the compound. Cairo and all members of his team returned safely from the successful mission.
SPECIAL AIR SERVICE REGIMENT (SASR)
The original Special Air Service was created by the British Army during the Second World War for special operations behind enemy lines, with the motto of ‘Who Dares Wins’. In 1957, the Australian Army created its own Special Air Service Regiment, commonly referred to as the Australian SAS, two years after the New Zealand Army founded its Special Air Service.
Australia’s SAS is considered by many to be the finest Special Forces unit in the world, and its members help train Special Forces of other countries, including those of the United States of America.
The top-secret regiment is based at Campbell Barracks at Swanbourne, in Perth, Western Australia. Because its men are often involved in covert anti-terrorist work, their names and faces cannot be revealed. The only exceptions to this rule are SAS members who receive the Victoria Cross. The unit is divided into three squadrons, with one squadron always on anti-terrorist duty and the others deployed on specific missions.
During the war in Afghanistan, Australian EDDs and their handlers have frequently worked with Australian SAS and commando units on special operations.
ZOOMERS
Charlie’s high-tech Zoomers are based on real prosthetic ‘blades’ used by athletes.
TANZANIA AND THE FIGHT AGAINST IVORY POACHERS
Dar es Salaam and Mwanza are real cities in Tanzania. Other places described in this book, such as the town of Ushirombo and the nearby Kigosi Game Reserve, also exist.
The problems faced by the Tanzanian Government in trying to stop organised ivory poaching are very real and urgent. The figures relating to the loss of elephants quoted are real and official.
Chief Ranger Wallace Springer is inspired by a real person, an Australian.
THE UNITED NATIONS (UN)
The United Nations was founded in 1945 and its headquarters is situated in New York City, USA. To date it has 193 member states, including Australia, which fund its worldwide humanitarian and peacekeeping operations. The secretary-general, who is elected by its members, is the organisation’s most senior officer.
Member states provide the UN’s peacekeeping forces. UN humanitarian agencies include the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), the World Health Organization (WHO), the World Food Programme (WFP), the International Court of Justice (ICJ or World Court), and the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF). Australia is currently a member of the UN Security Council, a body tasked with maintaining international peace and security.
* * *
About the Author
Stephen Dando-Collins is the award-winning author of more than thirty books, many of which have been translated into numerous languages. Most of Stephen’s books are about military history and include subjects such as ancient Rome, the American West, colonial Australia and the First World War. Pasteur’s Gambit was shortlisted for the science prize in the Victorian Premier’s Literary Awards and won the Queensland Premier’s Science Award. Crack Hardy, his most personal history, received wide acclaim. He has also written several titles for children and teenagers, including Chance in a Million, the Caesar the War Dog series and Tank Boys. Stephen and his wife, Louise, live and write in a former nunnery in Tasmania’s Tamar Valley.
For more on other books by Stephen Dando-Collins, including books about Australian, American, British and ancient Roman and Greek military history, go to www.stephendandocollins.com.
WATCH OUT FOR BOOK 4
IN THE
CAESAR THE WAR DOG
SERIES
COMING SOON
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted by any person or entity, including internet search engines or retailers, in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including printing, photocopying (except under the statutory exceptions provisions of the Australian Copyright Act 1968), recording, scanning or by any information storage and retrieval system without the prior written permission of Random House Australia. Any unauthorised distribution or use of this text may be a direct infringement of the author’s and publisher’s rights and those responsible may be liable in law accordingly.
Version 1.0
Caesar the War Dog: Operation Pink Elephant
Published by Random House Australia 2014
Copyright © Fame and Fortune Pty Ltd 2014
The moral right of the author has been asserted.
A Random House book
Published by Random House Australia Pty Ltd
Level 3, 100 Pacific Highway, North Sydney NSW, 2060
www.randomhouse.com.au
Addresses for companies within the Random House Group can be found at http://www.randomhouse.com.au/about/contacts.aspx
First published by Random House Australia in 2014
National Library of Australia
Cataloguing-in-Publication Entry
Author: Dando-Collins, Stephen, 1950–
Title: Caesar the war dog: operation pink elephant/Stephen Dando-Collins
ISBN: 9780857981691 (ebook)
Series: Caesar the war dog; 3
Target audience: For primary school age.
Subjects: Dogs – Juvenile fiction.
Detector dogs – Juvenile fiction.
Elephants – Juvenile fiction.
Poachers – Juvenile fiction.
Dewey number: A823.3
Cover photographs: dog © Ruth O’Leary/ruthlessphotos.com; Hercules C-130 © Dennis Steen/Shutterstock.com; savannah landscape © ligio/Shutterstock.com; African elephant front-on © Talvi/Shutterstock.com; African elephant in profile © Vaclav Volrab/Shutterstock.com; dry season © iStock.com/dave_valler
Cover design by Astred Hicks, designcherry
Loved the book?
* * *
There’s so much more stuff to check out online
AUSTRALIAN READERS:
randomhouse.com.au/kids
NEW ZEALAND READERS:
randomhouse.co.nz/kids
* * *
-moz-filter: grayscale(100%); -o-filter: grayscale(100%); -ms-filter: grayscale(100%); filter: grayscale(100%); " class="sharethis-inline-share-buttons">share
Operation Pink Elephant Page 19