Animals in War
- Episode aired May 10, 1989
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Horrible ways humans exploit other species
This documentary showed once on the Arts and Entertainment channel in 1989. I remember host Jack Perkins said that the documentary might be too strong for children. He should have added too strong for anyone with compassion.
It was narrated by actor Ian Holm and shows the various ways that other animal species have been viciously exploited in combat since the first World War. We see archival footage of horses being shot and blown up on battlefields, dogs with bombs stitched inside their stomachs let loose in trench warfare, pack mules who have had their vocal cords removed to keep them from giving away their position trying in vain to call out to other mules. Russians are shown driving cows over land mines in World War 2.
There is mention of Walt Disney and a secret program to find ways to use sea gulls as aerial bombers.
News reel footage with the title "Animals on Atom's Ark" is shown--we see farm animals being placed on ships (a young pig is held up to the camera as the narrator says "its understandable that this little fella does not want to be a guinea pig." ). We then see a nuclear detonation--the famous shot of an A bomb going off inside a ring of ships--there were animals on the decks to test the effects of radiation (the soldiers who helped wrangle the surviving animals ended up with radiation sickness themselves).
The trainer of Flipper is also interviewed--speaking about the time US military personnel visited the set and got the idea of using dolphins as underwater demolition recruits--with drugs and brain surgery.
The most disturbing scene might be military test footage of a rhesus monkey with shaved head strapped to a miniature version of a cockpit--electrodes are connected to the victim's feet and emit a violent shock. The aim, we are told, is for the monkey to hold onto a mockup of a control stick--when the animal removes his or her hand, they are given a shock. The helpless monkey is then bombarded with radiation from above. We see the monkey raise arms in futility and look around in terror while being doused with the radiation.
They also interview scientists associated with the research. A cold psychopathic man dismisses concern for the victims by saying he has a son in the Air Force.
A German or Dutch doctor reacts to a question about pigs being shot in the legs and then dumped in garbage bags to teach medics about gunshot wounds with the remark that it is good training for becoming a pediatrician.
One scientist tells a story about a Spanish scientist who placed wires in a bull's head so he could stop the animal in mid charge.
The viewer is left to question the morality of the practices though it really needs no reflection. It really makes you wonder if the human species is the spawn of some maniacal devil.
The closing credits includes a remarkable image of a German shepherd leaping across a trench with soldiers huddled below.
It was narrated by actor Ian Holm and shows the various ways that other animal species have been viciously exploited in combat since the first World War. We see archival footage of horses being shot and blown up on battlefields, dogs with bombs stitched inside their stomachs let loose in trench warfare, pack mules who have had their vocal cords removed to keep them from giving away their position trying in vain to call out to other mules. Russians are shown driving cows over land mines in World War 2.
There is mention of Walt Disney and a secret program to find ways to use sea gulls as aerial bombers.
News reel footage with the title "Animals on Atom's Ark" is shown--we see farm animals being placed on ships (a young pig is held up to the camera as the narrator says "its understandable that this little fella does not want to be a guinea pig." ). We then see a nuclear detonation--the famous shot of an A bomb going off inside a ring of ships--there were animals on the decks to test the effects of radiation (the soldiers who helped wrangle the surviving animals ended up with radiation sickness themselves).
The trainer of Flipper is also interviewed--speaking about the time US military personnel visited the set and got the idea of using dolphins as underwater demolition recruits--with drugs and brain surgery.
The most disturbing scene might be military test footage of a rhesus monkey with shaved head strapped to a miniature version of a cockpit--electrodes are connected to the victim's feet and emit a violent shock. The aim, we are told, is for the monkey to hold onto a mockup of a control stick--when the animal removes his or her hand, they are given a shock. The helpless monkey is then bombarded with radiation from above. We see the monkey raise arms in futility and look around in terror while being doused with the radiation.
They also interview scientists associated with the research. A cold psychopathic man dismisses concern for the victims by saying he has a son in the Air Force.
A German or Dutch doctor reacts to a question about pigs being shot in the legs and then dumped in garbage bags to teach medics about gunshot wounds with the remark that it is good training for becoming a pediatrician.
One scientist tells a story about a Spanish scientist who placed wires in a bull's head so he could stop the animal in mid charge.
The viewer is left to question the morality of the practices though it really needs no reflection. It really makes you wonder if the human species is the spawn of some maniacal devil.
The closing credits includes a remarkable image of a German shepherd leaping across a trench with soldiers huddled below.
- kgwrote-854-104240
- Apr 4, 2016
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