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Japanese American Soldiers Were Used as Bait for Dogs

Posted by Andrew on Saturday, November 12 @ 10:00:00 EST

History By Manolo Morales
©2005 KHON2 TV (Honolulu)
November 11, 2005

Hawaii soldiers of Japanese descent were used as bait for attack dogs during World War II because it was believed that the soldiers smelled like the enemy. It's a story that the U.S. military won't admit to because there are no official records of it.

Many are already aware of the historical accounts of Japanese-American families sent to internment camps and losing their property shortly after the Pearl Harbor attack. When some of the men became soldiers of the famed 100th Battalion, 25 were picked to go on a secret mission.

"When they said dog training, I thought we were gonna train the dogs, but it was the other way around. We're the bait, that's what got us all disappointed," says Raymond Nosaka, 100th Infantry Battalion.

"We figured, well, that's orders. We're in the Army. You do what they tell you and no questions asked," says Tokuji Ono, 100th Infantry Battalion.

The Army believed that there's a distinct Japanese scent that dogs can be trained to sniff out. So the plan was to train attack dogs so they can be sent to the jungles in the Pacific.

Hawaii soldiers like Nosaka and Ono were shipped to jungle areas in Mississippi, where the dogs would chase them. With padded clothing for protection, they were also told to wear pieces of meat around their neck so the dogs would lunge at their throat.

"One dog would leap up and grab at that and try to pull you down," recounts Ono.

"They told us, 'next time they attack you, with the momentum, fall down backwards.' But when we fell down backwards, they started biting our feet," says Nosaka.

Author Graham Salisbury interviewed the soldiers and wrote a fact-based novel of the story with a book titled "Eyes of the Emperor."

"What I get from them is that they were honorable U.S. soldiers, they were doing their jobs, they had orders. The orders were to be out there and be dog bait, so they darn well went out there and became dog bait," says Salisbury.

Salisbury wants the military to give the Hawaii soldiers a commendation. But the military says there are no records that the mission existed. Seven veterans who are still alive disagree.

There was never any proof of a distinct Japanese smell. The mission was aborted after four months.

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