American fashion model Bella Hadid is seen promoting Orabella in SoHo on May 02, 2024 in New York City. (Photo by Gotham/GC 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.

Nikita Dragun attends the 2019 MTV Video Music Awards at Prudential Center on August 26, 2019 in Newark, New Jersey. (Photo by Caitlin Ochs/Reuters)

A farmer competes in a traditional bull race at Swabi on February 18, 2024. (Photo by Abdul Majeed/AFP Photo)

An elephant enjoys its back being scrubbed by the keeper on March 1, 1950. (Photo by Fox Photos/Getty Images)

Pauline Torres carries belongings from her flooded Merced, Calif., home on Tuesday, January 10, 2023. (Photo by Noah Berger/AP Photo)

Mercedes Formula One driver Lewis Hamilton of Britain sprays champagne at a grid girl as he celebrates his victory on the podium after the Chinese F1 Grand Prix at the Shanghai International Circuit, April 12, 2015. (Photo by Carlos Barria/Reuters)

The Bahamas, the Commonwealth nation of hundreds of islands roughly the size of Connecticut and with population of just a bit over Anaheim, is known for its crystal waters and pristine beaches. This is possibly one of the world’s most beautiful havens of nature, yet people are coming here to see pigs. It is unclear when the pigs first appeared on Exuma Island or where they come from. There’s talk about a daring escape from a shipwreck, or sailors releasing the swine on purpose. In all probability, there were no pigs on this tropical paradise before European settlers came, so their mere presence is the work of human. The intriguing feat of nature, however, is that this population of pigs developed a fine aptitude for swimming. Here: “So you're on a boat in Bahamas and then this pig swims by begging for food”. (Photo and caption by Lisa Larsen/Public Domain)