This photo provided by Red Antler Processing shows the alligator sport hunting team made up of, from left, Tanner White, tag-holder Donald Woods, Will Thomas and Joey Clark as they hoist, with the help of a forklift, the longest alligator officially harvested in Mississippi, Saturday, August 26, 2023, at Red Antler Processing in Yazoo City, Miss. The male alligator weighed 802.5 pounds and measured 14 feet, 3 inches long, and its length broke the state record as the longest alligator ever caught, according to the Mississippi Department of Wildlife, Fisheries and Parks. (Phoot by Shane Smith/Red Antler Processing via AP Photo)

Models wait backstage ahead of their presentation of creations from the YINMU collection by designer Wei Jiang during the China Fashion Week in Beijing, China, 26 October 2020. The fashion event runs from 24 October to 01 November 2020. (Photo by Wu Hong/EPA/EFE)

The comet Neowise, or C/2020 F3, is seen in the evening sky above the artwork titled: “Seven Magic Mountains” by artist Ugo Rondinone, Thursday, July 16, 2020, near Jean, Nev., south of Las Vegas. (Photo by John Locher/AP Photo)

St. Senans' Aoife Allen competing in the Women's 3000m Steeplechase at Morton Stadium in Santry, Co. Dublin ob August 30, 2020 during the 2020 National Track & Field Championships. (Photo by Morgan Treacy/INPHO/Rex Features/Shutterstock)

The full moon rises behind the cooling towers of the nuclear power station in Philippsburg, Germany, 06 May 2020. The nuclear power plant in Philippsburg was completely shut down by 31 December 2019. According to the operator EnBW, the two cooling towers are expected to be demolished by blasting on 14-15 May 2020. (Photo by Ronald Wittek/EPA/EFE)

Casket of Leibby Kletzky, a murdered eight-year-old boy who went missing from the Hasidic neighborhood of Borough Park, Brooklyn is carried during a procession on July 13, 2011 in New York City. After a two day search Kletzky's dismembered body was found partially in a suitcase inside a dumpster and partially in a refrigerator in a nearby apartment. Police detectives have taken Levi Aron, 35, into custody in connection to the killing. (Photo by Ramin Talaie/Getty Images)

Throughout the course of the long war in Afghanistan, Coalition troops have relied on thousands of military working dogs to help keep them safe, and make their jobs easier. The dogs are trained to detect explosives, to find illegal drugs, to search for missing comrades, or target enemy combatants. Not only are they active on the front lines, but behind the lines they serve as therapy dogs, service dogs, and loyal companions. They also share the same risks as the ground troops, suffering injuries and sometimes death on the battlefields. Gathered here are images of these dogs and their handlers in Afghanistan and back home, from over the past several years, part of the ongoing series here on Afghanistan.

(L-R) Heidi Klum and Alessandra Ambrosio attend the 2020 Vanity Fair Oscar Party hosted by Radhika Jones at Wallis Annenberg Center for the Performing Arts on February 09, 2020 in Beverly Hills, California. (Photo by Kevin Mazur/VF20/WireImage)