Indian models showcase creations by designer Shivan & Naresh during the Lakme Fashion Week (LFW) Winter/Festive 2016 in Mumbai on August 27, 2016. (Photo by Sujit Jaiswal/AFP Photo)

Children feed a giraffe at Pairi Daiza wildlife park, a zoo and botanical garden in Brugelette, Belgium, May 25, 2015. (Photo by Francois Lenoir/Reuters)

A model, fashion detail, walks the runway at the GCDS show during Milan Fashion Week Spring/Summer 2019 on September 22, 2018 in Milan, Italy. (Photo by Andreas Rentz/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.

A boy rides on a snow wagon towed by a robot dressed as a Teddy bear, which only moves forward by moving its legs, during the Ice and snow carnival at Taoranting park in Beijing February 9, 2015. (Photo by Kim Kyung-Hoon/Reuters)

Students dance in the hallway during a break at Moscow State Academy of Choreography in Moscow, Russia 03 March 2016. Moscow State Academy of Choreography is the oldest institution in Moscow which teaches Ballet arts not only Russian citizens, but also representatives from more than 20 countries. (Photo by Yuri Kochetkov/EPA)

Peter Dinklage, left, and Lena Headey attend the 67th Primetime Emmy Awards on Sunday, September 20, 2015, at the Microsoft Theater in Los Angeles. (Photo by Alex Berliner/Invision for the Television Academy/AP Images)

Indian commuters travel in a local train in Kolkata, India, Tuesday, February 26, 2013. Indian Railway Minister Pawan Kumar Bansal is presenting the country's rail budget for next fiscal year in the parliament Tuesday, Feb. 26, 2013. Indian railway network is one of the world's largest, with some 14 million passengers daily and some 64,000 kilometers (40,000 miles) of railway track cut through some of the most densely populated cities. (Photo by Bikas Das/AP Photo)