Bill Text: NY K00559 | 2023-2024 | General Assembly | Introduced

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Bill Title: Memorializing Governor Kathy Hochul to proclaim May 21-27, 2023, as Military Animal Appreciation Week, and to honor these animals for their service

Spectrum: Slight Partisan Bill (Republican 33-11)

Status: (Passed) 2023-05-30 - adopted [K00559 Detail]

Download: New_York-2023-K00559-Introduced.html

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Assembly Resolution No. 559

BY: M. of A. Manktelow

        MEMORIALIZING  Governor  Kathy  Hochul to proclaim
        May 21-27, 2023,  as  Military  Animal  Appreciation
        Week, and to honor these animals for their service

  WHEREAS,  It  is  the  custom  of this Legislative Body to recognize
official days and months that are set aside  to  increase  awareness  of
serious issues that affect the lives of citizens of New York State; and

  WHEREAS,  Attendant  to  such  concern,  and in full accord with its
long-standing traditions, this  Legislative  Body  is  justly  proud  to
memorialize  Governor  Kathy  Hochul  to  proclaim  May  21-27, 2023, as
Military Animal Appreciation Week; and

  WHEREAS, A generally overlooked part of our  armed  forces  are  the
military  animals which stand with and alongside our brave, enlisted men
and women; and

  WHEREAS, Some of these courageous  military  animals  include  dogs,
dolphins, rats, mules, donkeys, and pigeons; and

  WHEREAS,  Military canines are the most widely used military animal;
dogs have served in combat alongside United States soldiers during every
major conflict since the birth of our Nation; dogs were mostly  used  as
message  carriers  and sentries during the first few conflicts, however,
these  days,   they   are   trained   to   perform   a   wide-range   of
highly-specialized tasks; and

  WHEREAS,  Modern  military  dogs  are trained to sniff out bombs and
drugs, track people, and even attack when  necessary;  there  are  about
2,500  war  dogs  in  service today, with about 700 serving at any given
time overseas; and

  WHEREAS, The United States military branches use marine mammals in a
variety of ways; overseen by the Navy Marine  Mammal  Program,  dolphins
use their evolved sonar to detect underwater mines; and

  WHEREAS, Due to their exceptional underwater vision, the Navy Marine
Mammal Program also uses sea lions to find potential enemy swimmers near
piers and ships and draw attention to them; and

  WHEREAS, The United States has their own specialized military animal
programs;  in  2012,  Army  officials  developed  the  Rugged  Automated
Training System (RATS) to see how well the rodents could find bombs; the
use of rats could have several advantages, including  their  small  size
which  would  allow  them to sneak into tiny spaces where larger animals
and people cannot; and

  WHEREAS, United States service members have used a variety  of  pack
animals  in  remote  areas, including mules and donkeys; the practice is
especially common with elite Special Operations troops,  who  frequently
operate  in  small  groups  away  from  larger units which would provide
logistical support; and

  WHEREAS, In  2001,  the  United  States  Marine  Corps  revived  the
horsemanship  skills  which  were  once a key part of the nation's armed
forces, but were cast aside when tanks  and  armored  vehicles  replaced
them;  Special  Forces soldiers rode horses to fight alongside tribesmen
in rugged terrain without roads in Afghanistan; and

  WHEREAS,  During World War I and World War II, the Army trained tens
of thousands of birds at the Pigeon Breeding and Training Center at Fort
Monmouth,  New  Jersey,  to  deliver  messages  and   conduct   overhead
reconnaissance of battlefields; and

  WHEREAS,  It  is  appropriate  for  this Legislative Body to commend
these animals and to recognize their contributions  by  Military  Animal
Appreciation  Week,  honoring  the  past  and  present animals for their
valuable service and protection; they truly deserve to be remembered  by
all the citizens of this great Empire State; now, therefore, be it

  RESOLVED,  That  this Legislative Body pause in its deliberations to
memorialize Governor Kathy  Hochul  to  proclaim  May  21-27,  2023,  as
Military  Animal Appreciation Week, and to honor these animals for their
service; and be it further

  RESOLVED, That a copy of this  Resolution,  suitably  engrossed,  be
transmitted  to The Honorable Kathy Hochul, Governor of the State of New
York.