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Smoky the Yorkie: the true WWII war dog hero story

See Smoky the Yorkie's real story – guest starring your dog.

If you love a small dog with a big personality, you will want to meet Smoky. Smoky was a four-pound Yorkshire terrier found in a foxhole in New Guinea in 1944 and adopted by Corporal William Wynne. She went on to run wire through a pipe under an airstrip, fly on combat missions, and visit wounded soldiers in hospitals. Her story shows how much comfort a tiny dog can bring, even in the middle of a war.

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The story in 5 parts

A short version first. The full story, with every detail, is further down.

Part 1

Who was Smoky

Smoky's story starts in New Guinea in 1944, where a soldier found her scratching in the dirt at the bottom of an abandoned foxhole near a jungle road.

Part 2

How Smoky helped win the war

You can imagine how strange it must have felt to trust a tiny dog with a task engineers could not do by hand.

Part 3

Smoky as an early therapy dog

You might not expect a war dog to become known for comfort rather than combat, but that is exactly what happened to Smoky.

Part 4

Life after the war

When the war ended, the Army ordered soldiers to leave animals behind, so Wynne smuggled Smoky back to the United States in a modified case.

Part 5

Smoky's legacy and memorials

Ohio and Australia both have memorials that honor Smoky.

Read the full story

Part 1

Who was Smoky

Smoky's story starts in New Guinea in 1944, where a soldier found her scratching in the dirt at the bottom of an abandoned foxhole near a jungle road. She weighed about four pounds and stood only seven inches tall, with a head the size of a baseball. The man who found her wanted money to get back into a poker game, so Corporal William Wynne, a 22-year-old aerial photographer from Ohio, bought her for two Australian pounds, about $6.44 at the time. He named her Smoky, and over the next year and a half they survived air raids, typhoons, and 12 combat missions together.

Part 2

How Smoky helped win the war

You can imagine how strange it must have felt to trust a tiny dog with a task engineers could not do by hand. At the Allied airfield at Lingayen Gulf on Luzon in the Philippines, the base needed telephone wire run through a 70-foot pipe, only eight inches wide, that ran under the airstrip. Digging a trench by hand would have taken days and left the men exposed to constant Japanese air attacks. Instead, Wynne tied kite string to Smoky's collar and coaxed her through the narrow, silt-clogged pipe from the other end. She made it through, the string was used to pull the wires into place, and she was credited with saving about 250 men and 40 planes. Beyond that single day, Smoky flew with Wynne on twelve combat missions, riding in his pack near the machine guns for hours at a time, and she lived through air raids, a typhoon, and kamikaze attacks over the course of the war.

Part 3

Smoky as an early therapy dog

You might not expect a war dog to become known for comfort rather than combat, but that is exactly what happened to Smoky. When Wynne caught dengue fever and was sent to a hospital in New Guinea, his friends brought Smoky to visit him, and nurses noticed how much the other patients enjoyed her company. They began taking her on rounds each morning to visit wounded soldiers, including men recovering from the Biak Island invasion, and returning her to Wynne's bed at night. Wynne had taught her tricks such as playing dead, walking a tightrope, riding a small scooter, and picking out the letters of her own name, and these acts helped lift the spirits of the men who watched her. Smoky is described as one of the first documented therapy dogs, and her hospital visits continued for years, both during and after the war.

Part 4

Life after the war

When the war ended, the Army ordered soldiers to leave animals behind, so Wynne smuggled Smoky back to the United States in a modified case. Back home, Wynne and Smoky kept touring hospitals and performing for audiences, and Smoky also appeared on weekly television, where a new trick was shown every week. She kept up this work until 1955, when she retired from performing. Smoky died in her sleep in 1957, at about 14 years old.

Part 5

Smoky's legacy and memorials

Ohio and Australia both have memorials that honor Smoky. Wynne buried her in a World War II ammunition box in the Rocky River Reservation near Cleveland, and a bronze statue of Smoky sitting in a GI helmet was dedicated there on Veterans Day in 2005. A separate monument to Smoky and to war animals of Australia was dedicated in Brisbane in 2012. She also received service medals from groups such as the United States War Dogs Association and the Australian RSPCA's Purple Cross. An information plaque near her Cleveland memorial lists her alongside other well-known war dogs, including Stubby, Nemo, and Chips.

Questions people ask

How did Smoky the Yorkie become famous?

Smoky became known for pulling communication wire through a 70-foot pipe under a bombed airstrip on Luzon in the Philippines, which was credited with saving about 250 men and 40 planes. She later became famous again for visiting wounded soldiers in hospitals and performing tricks to lift their spirits.

What breed was Smoky the war dog?

Smoky was a Yorkshire terrier, weighing about four pounds and standing around seven inches tall.

How did Smoky help during World War II?

Smoky ran a string through a narrow pipe under an airstrip so telephone wire could be pulled through, sparing men from digging a trench under enemy fire. She also flew on twelve combat missions with Corporal William Wynne and survived air raids, a typhoon, and kamikaze attacks.

Is Smoky considered the first therapy dog?

Smoky is described as one of the first documented therapy dogs, based on her hospital visits comforting wounded soldiers during and after the war.

Where is Smoky buried or memorialized?

Smoky is buried in the Rocky River Reservation near Cleveland, Ohio, where a bronze statue of her sitting in a GI helmet was dedicated in 2005. A separate memorial to her and to Australian war animals stands in Brisbane, dedicated in 2012.

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Sources

  1. Dogs at War: Smoky, a Healing Presence for Wounded WWII Soldiers. History.
  2. The WWII Dog Who Ran the Wire | Dogs in History. Dogs in History.
  3. Smoky, Yorkshire Terrier and WWII War Dog. America Comes Alive, Aug 25, 2016.
  4. War Dogs Come in Different Sizes: The WWII Story of a Yorkshire Terrier Named Smoky – World War 2 History – Short Stories. ww2history.org.
  5. The WWII Story of a Yorkshire Terrier Named Smoky. PPAK9 - Project Paws Alive, Dec 30, 2025.
  6. The Tale of Smoky the War Dog: A Heroic Canine. Mighty Line Floor Tape.
  7. Smoky | Susan Bahary Sculptor. baharystudios.com.
  8. Smoky: World War II Hero Dog, Cleveland, Ohio. RoadsideAmerica.com.

Written by TimeWalkies EditorialLast updated How we research