During World War I, dogs held a contradictory place in American society. These animals functioned simultaneously as patriots, pets, and pests. This essay surveys the ways in which dogs either contributed to the war effort or seemed to subvert it through their uselessness as companion animals and their predation as feral ones. Ultimately, even worsening conditions on the homefront could not cause the American public as a whole to consider surrendering its affection for these animals, including the worthless ones. In the face of impending legislation that threatened to eliminate man’s best friend as a war measure, the American people successfully defended the dog, while citizens in several of the other warring nations could not afford to do so. American admiration for the patriot, combined with affection for the pet, outweighed anxiety over the pest.
","abstract_html":"<p>During World War I, dogs held a contradictory place in American society. These animals functioned simultaneously as patriots, pets, and pests. This essay surveys the ways in which dogs either contributed to the war effort or seemed to subvert it through their uselessness as companion animals and their predation as feral ones. Ultimately, even worsening conditions on the homefront could not cause the American public as a whole to consider surrendering its affection for these animals, including the worthless ones. In the face of impending legislation that threatened to eliminate man’s best friend as a war measure, the American people successfully defended the dog, while citizens in several of the other warring nations could not afford to do so. American admiration for the patriot, combined with affection for the pet, outweighed anxiety over the pest.</p>","abstract_has_math":false,"creators":["Laurence, Alison G"],"institution":null,"degree_name":"M.A.","degree_level":"Thesis","degree_discipline":"History","degree_department":null,"school":null,"contributors":["Dr. Michael Mizell-Nelson","Dr. Connie Atkinson","Dr. Robert Dupont"],"advisors":[],"committee_chairs":[],"committee_members":[],"year":2013,"date_issued":"2013-05-17T07:00:00Z","date_published":"2013-05-17T07:00:00Z","updated_at":"2026-07-24T05:29:47Z","subjects":["America","Dogs","Domestication","Pets","Homefront","World War I","Cultural History","Social History","United States History"],"languages":[],"rights":[],"rights_urls":[],"identifier_entries":[]},"links":{"outbound_url":"https://scholarworks.uno.edu/td/1644","outbound_label":"Repository record","outbound_source":"dc:identifier"},"metadata_groups":[{"id":"people","label":"People","entries":[{"key":"dc:contributor","label":"Contributor","values":["Dr. Michael Mizell-Nelson","Dr. Connie Atkinson","Dr. Robert Dupont"]},{"key":"dc:creator","label":"Author","values":["Laurence, Alison G"]}]},{"id":"academic_context","label":"Academic Context","entries":[{"key":"thesis:degree_discipline","label":"Discipline","values":["History"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_level","label":"Degree Level","values":["Thesis"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_name","label":"Degree Name","values":["M.A."]}]},{"id":"subjects_keywords","label":"Subjects and Keywords","entries":[{"key":"dc:subject","label":"Dc Subject","values":["America","Dogs","Domestication","Pets","Homefront","World War I","Cultural History","Social History","United States History"]}]},{"id":"identifiers","label":"Identifiers","entries":[{"key":"dc:identifier","label":"Identifier","values":["https://scholarworks.uno.edu/td/1644"]}]},{"id":"additional","label":"Additional Metadata","entries":[{"key":"dc:description.abstract","label":"Abstract","values":["During World War I, dogs held a contradictory place in American society. These animals functioned simultaneously as patriots, pets, and pests. This essay surveys the ways in which dogs either contributed to the war effort or seemed to subvert it through their uselessness as companion animals and their predation as feral ones. Ultimately, even worsening conditions on the homefront could not cause the American public as a whole to consider surrendering its affection for these animals, including the worthless ones. In the face of impending legislation that threatened to eliminate man’s best friend as a war measure, the American people successfully defended the dog, while citizens in several of the other warring nations could not afford to do so. American admiration for the patriot, combined with affection for the pet, outweighed anxiety over the pest.
"]},{"key":"dc:title","label":"Title","values":["Patriot, Pet, and Pest: America Debates the Dog's Worth During World War I"]}]}],"canonical_facts":{"dc:contributor":["Dr. Michael Mizell-Nelson","Dr. Connie Atkinson","Dr. Robert Dupont"],"dc:creator":["Laurence, Alison G"],"dc:description.abstract":["During World War I, dogs held a contradictory place in American society. These animals functioned simultaneously as patriots, pets, and pests. This essay surveys the ways in which dogs either contributed to the war effort or seemed to subvert it through their uselessness as companion animals and their predation as feral ones. Ultimately, even worsening conditions on the homefront could not cause the American public as a whole to consider surrendering its affection for these animals, including the worthless ones. In the face of impending legislation that threatened to eliminate man’s best friend as a war measure, the American people successfully defended the dog, while citizens in several of the other warring nations could not afford to do so. American admiration for the patriot, combined with affection for the pet, outweighed anxiety over the pest.
"],"dc:identifier":["https://scholarworks.uno.edu/td/1644"],"dc:subject":["America","Dogs","Domestication","Pets","Homefront","World War I","Cultural History","Social History","United States History"],"dc:title":["Patriot, Pet, and Pest: America Debates the Dog's Worth During World War I"],"thesis:degree_discipline":["History"],"thesis:degree_level":["Thesis"],"thesis:degree_name":["M.A."]},"updated_at":"2026-07-24T05:29:47Z"}