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.

People hold umbrellas as they walk past a flooded street in Taiyuan, Shanxi Province, China, July 19, 2016. (Photo by Reuters/China Daily)

Katjinga, a Rhodesian ridgeback dog who lives on a 20-acre farm in Germany, adopted an abandoned pot-bellied piglet in August 2009. The tiny black piglet, named Paulinchen, had been so small at birth that her mother likely overlooked it. Katjinga's owner, Roland Adam, found the piglet alone and cold and brought it to his 8-year-old dog. (Photo by Fame Pictures)

Snow falls as a woman walks her dog in the village of Podolye, 70 kilometers (43 miles) east of St. Petersburg, Russia, early Thursday, May 11, 2017. North winds brought snow to the east of the St. Petersburg region. (Photo by Dmitri Lovetsky/AP Photo)

Vinaya Vijay, right, and Vijay Parthasarathy wade through water at Badwater Basin, Thursday, February 22, 2024, in Death Valley National Park, Calif. The basin, normally a salt flat, has filled from rain over the past few months. (Photo by John Locher/AP Photo)

Okame Flowering Cherry tree blossoms are seen frozen on Valentine's Day in front of RX3 Compounding Pharmacy in Chester, Virginia, February 14, 2021. (Photo by Kristi K. Higgins/progress-index.com/USA Today Network via Reuters)

A performer dances at a housing exhibition in Wuhan, Hubei province, China, September 27, 2015. (Photo by Reuters/Stringer)

A man jokingly poses with a new installation of British graffiti artist Banksy's art in New York, October 20, 2013. (Photo by Carlo Allegri/Reuters)