A migrant carries his belongings as he arrives at the Beijing railway station to catch a train in Beijing, Friday, February 13, 2015. (Photo by Andy Wong/AP Photo)

The British rock and roll group the Beatles talk to Ed Sullivan at CBS Studio 50 before their live television appearance on “The Ed Sullivan Show” in New York, February 10, 1964. From left to right are, Sullivan, John Lennon, Ringo Starr, holding a cigarette, and Paul McCartney. (Photo by 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.

Cocoa Beach, Florida, USA. 7th October, 2016. Kaleigh Black, 14, left, and Amber Olsen, 12, run for cover as a squall with rain and wind pelt them while they explore the Cocoa Beach Pier on Friday (10/7/16) after hurricane Matthew passed to the east on Florida's east coast.(Photo by Douglas R. Clifford/Tampa Bay Times/ZUMA Wire/Alamy Live News)

MTV “Ex On The Beach” star Charlotte Dawson and Big Brother star Sam Giffen (not pictured) having fun on a night out in Manchester, England after leaving neighbourhood restaurant on September 8, 2016. (Photo by XposurePhotos.com)

U.S. Army soldiers with the 1st Battalion, 501st Infantry Regiment deployed to Combat Outpost Sabari, Afghanistan scan their area as they begin a multi-day air assault mission near the Pakistani border of eastern Afghanistan's Khost province May 2, 2012. (Photo by Staff Sgt. Joshua L. DeMotts/U.S. Air Force)

A Tibetan mastiff dog is displayed for sale at a mastiff show in Baoding, Hebei province, south of Beijing on March 9, 2013. Fetching prices up to around 750,000 USD, mastiffs have become a prized status-symbol amongst China's wealthy, with rich buyers across the country sending prices skyrocketing. Owners say the mastiffs, descendents of dogs used for hunting by nomadic tribes in central Asia and Tibet are fiercely loyal and protective. Breeders still travel to the Himalayan plateau to collect young puppies, although many are unable to adjust to the low altitudes and die during the journey. (Photo by Ed Jones/AFP Photo)

Kirby Chambliss of the United States flies in formation with Matt Hall of Australia, Yoshihide Muroya of Japan and Nigel Lamb of Britain prior to the third stage of the Red Bull Air Race World Championship in front of the Petronas Towers in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, on May 15, 2014. (Photo by Joerg Mitter/Red Bull via Reuters)