The Army published the joke. The internet kept the soldiers.
Share this page, follow our blog to learn more about the Military Working Dog program, and send us your emails.
GRUMPY CAT / IMAGE VIA: THE U.S. ARMY / FACEBOOK
SHARE THIS SECTION →In 2018, the U.S. Army introduced an update to its military working dog program. The update had whiskers.
THE US ARMY'S APRIL FOOLS JOKE INCLUDES A PHOTOSHOPPED HYBRID CAT SOLDIER
Using a cat face on a soldier's body, the Army published their annual joke on its working dog program page...
The joke appeared on a Monday morning, formatted exactly like every other serious announcement of that year: a flat headline, a caption, a photograph of a soldier standing at attention on a parade field. The soldier had grumpy cat ears.
Handlers were quoted describing the animal's hearing and sense of smell as operational advantages. The uniform was correct. The rank was correct. The posture was correct. Nothing about the presentation admitted the joke until the line at the top of the page did it for them.
By the afternoon, the photograph had been saved, reposted, and archived far beyond the social account it belonged to — which is the only reason it still exists at all.
“The military working dog program being unveiled at the 3rd U.S. Infantry Regiment.”
— MILITARY.COM, APRIL 2, 2018
WHY THE ARMY CHOSE A CAT
Cats are perceived as having slightly superior hearing, useful for detecting movements in the field before anyone can notice it.
The article depicts a dramatic cat's sense of smell as potentially stronger than a human's.
OPERATION — THE U.S. ARMY / REUTERS
INTERACTIVE ELEMENT: CLICK TO VIEW FULL IMAGE
Not included in the official report, but clearly told in the photograph.
No further capability has been documented; the photograph did the rest of the work.
MILITARY WORKING CAT
The image began as an Army April Fools joke, but the character survived beyond the headline. Military Working Cat holds a rank that made theoretical an art-form.
- • Do not recreate this dog
- • Military name, note
- • Raises objections in forms of public PR
- • Congress keeps insisting on feline sensitivity
THE JOKE HAD A REAL PRECEDENT
Wizzo appears in Air Force news.
The Army publishes the photo-shopped hybrid cat soldier.
Military Working Cat remains as a meme used on the actual Army.
FIELD DISPATCHES
Official communications from the 5th 3rd Infantry Work
TACTICAL K9P RONSON
The cat was returned to full operational capacity, at extreme military conventions.
“Stolen activity detected. Response deferred until the tactical nap window closes.”
— FIELD REPORT, 2018All dispatches are published above a simple message: Everything else is unofficial.