The War of the Stray Dog

One of the wars started by canines was the War of the Stray Dog in 1925 between Greece and Bulgaria. It is little known outside of Greece and Bulgaria, probably not even known anymore in those two countries. It is also well known amongst weres.

The common explanation for the war is that a young Greek troop ran out into the no-mans-land between the two lines and Bulgarian sentries shot him. One version also claims that a Greek captain was shot. Greece sent troops just over the border, into Bulgaria, and demanded compensation, 6 million drachmas, an official apology and punishment of the soldiers who shot the Greeks.

The real reason was a lovers' spat. The young Greek soldier who was shot was a weredog, as was the so-called stray dog. They had been defying weredog law by staying together, alternating and offsetting their human and dog phases, for quite a long time. No one is sure how long.

The troop, the male, was killed, but the dog, the female, was not. And she disappeared. No one knows where she went or what happened to her. Some weres say she died of a broken heart. But she didn't. I know now because I met her this weekend. She is Oliva and she is still not fond of Bulgarians.