A woman reacts to having leaves thrown on her, while taking a photo, in Central Park as leaves begin to change colors on October 26, 2022 in New York City. Leaves around parts of Central Park have begun changing colors while much of Long Island and Upstate New York have already peaked. (Photo by Alexi Rosenfeld/Getty Images)

A lifeguard warns swimmers as a sea gull flies by on Labor Day at Daytona Beach in Florida on September 4, 2023. (Photo by Paul Hennessy/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images)

One of the Siberian tiger twins, born on April 13, 2025, is presented to the press at the Budapest zoo and botanic garden, on June 12, 2025 during their first veterinary examination. (Photo by Attila Kisbenedek/AFP Photo)

A lone male cheetah is set upon by a pack of African wild dogs. Peter Haygarth had been following the dogs as they hunted in Zimanga Private Game Reserve in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. On first encountering the cheetah, the dogs were wary, but as the rest of the pack arrived, their confidence grew and they began to encircle the cat. Peter kept his focus on the cat’s face. In a few minutes the spat was over as the cheetah fled. (Behaviour: mammals category). (Photo by Peter Haygarth)

Model Daisy-May Demetre, 9 year-old double amputee who will walk the runway during Paris Fashion Week, is seen during a photo shoot a day before the show of luxury children's wear label Lulu et Gigi in Paris, France, September, 26, 2019. (Photo by Gonzalo Fuentes/Reuters)

Dr. Anton Lim is interviewed by the media as he holds Kabang, a two-year-old injured mixed breed, upon arrival at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport in Pasay city, south of Manila, Philippines, early Saturday June 8, 2013 from San Francisco, Calif. Kabang lost her snout and upper jaw saving two girls' lives in the Philippines was headed back to its owner following treatment at the University of California, Davis veterinary hospital. (Photo by Bullit Marquez/AP Photo)

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.

Jimmy Arnold, an overweight boy from Rochester, bites into a cake. (Photo by Reg Birkett/Keystone/Getty Images). 14th April 1951