Toni thank you for joining us today. Im excited to talk about loyal forces. Lindsay barnes and i coauthored this book that was published in 2013. We did it after an exhibition on the larger topic of animals in war that we had at the museum. For the book, we narrow the focus just to talk about the u. S. Military and the use of animals throughout the war. I will talk about four main animals today and if we have some time, i will try to get in some other fun topics as well. We will talk about mules, dogs, pigeons and horses. We will go to the first slide on mules. Although they are often looked down upon because of their stubborn natures, the phrase tough as a government mule is one we are probably familiar with. They are hardworking and widely used in the military, both before world war ii and during the war. They really did prove vital in some areas. Why use mules . They have a sturdy nature and are very surefooted. They were vital on some of the rugged terrains that were impassable by