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.

Couples take part in a Valentine's Day attempt to break the record for the world's largest simultaneous gay kiss on February 14, 2004 in Rome, Italy. (Photo by Franco Origlia/Getty Images)

“Horst Faas (28 April 1933 – 10 May 2012) was a German photo-journalist and two-time Pulitzer Prize winner. He is best-known for his images of the Vietnam War”. – Wikipedia

Photo: A U.S. crewman runs from a crashed CH-21 Shawnee troop helicopter near the village of Ca Mau in the southern tip of South Vietnam, December 11, 1962. Two helicopters crashed without serious injuries during a government raid on the Viet Cong-infiltrated area. Both helicopters were destroyed to keep them out of enemy hands. (Photo by AP Photo/Horst Faas)

Russian President Vladimir Putin (C) and Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu (back) attend a reception to honour graduates of military academies at the Kremlin in Moscow, Russia, June 28, 2016. (Photo by Alexei Druzhinin/Reuters/Sputnik/Kremlin)

Supporters of former Democratic presidential candidate Bernie Sanders hold up posters at a “Black Men For Bernie” rally to gain support for third party candidates and protest the DNC during the 2016 Democratic National Convention on July 27, 2016 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Patrick T. Fallon/AFP Photo)

The damaged battleship USS California, listing to port after being hit by Japanese aerial torpedoes and bombs, is seen off Ford Island during the attack on Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, U.S. December 7, 1941. The 75th anniversary of the attack, which brought the United States into World War Two, is marked on December 7, 2016. (Photo by Reuters/U.S. Navy/National Archives)

Sikh devotee take part in Nagar Keertan procession on the occasion of Guru Gobind Singh birth anniversary in Allahabad, India on December 29, 2016. Guru Gobind Singh, born Gobind Rai (1666 – 1708), was the 10th Sikh Guru, a spiritual master, warrior, poet and philosopher. When his father, Guru Tegh Bahadur, was beheaded for refusing to convert to Islam, Guru Gobind Singh was formally installed as the leader of the Sikhs at age nine, becoming the last of the living Sikh Gurus. (Photo by Prabhat Kumar Verma/Pacific Press via ZUMA Wire/Rex Features/Shutterstock)