Major Lister of Košare: the story of the dog who guarded the Serbian army

In the battle at the Košare border post, a dog also lost his life, Major Lister. In the sea of heroic stories and personal tragedies experienced by more than a hundred soldiers during the two-month hell at Košare, one has remained in the shadows: the story of a dog, a dog with the rank of major.

Lister was not the only dog at the Košare border post, there were also Nez, Crni, Maksimilijan... but Lister, the soldiers say, was a byword for dignity, courage and loyalty. He was a favourite among the troops and was known for not liking other dogs. He earned the rank of major because from 1992 onwards he carried out his duties well in peacetime, and even better in war.

The story goes that in 1995, thanks to his composure, he saved himself, a she-bear and her cubs from certain death. One evening the soldiers were digging a pit to bury rubbish in when they heard sounds coming out of the pitch dark. Convinced that the enemy was approaching, they shouted: "Army of Yugoslavia, halt!", but nobody answered.

Lister, taut as a bowstring as always, did not rise up on his hind legs, which would have been the sign that an animal was approaching, but neither did he growl or move his ears to signal that a human was coming. Because of him the soldiers kept their composure and did not open fire, and then the flicker of the campfire revealed that what they were hearing in the dark was actually a she-bear and her cubs.

A similar situation occurred in 1998 when Lister set out on patrol. The moment a bear approached, Lister rose up on his hind legs, and his stance frightened the bear, which went on its way with a roar.

A similar situation occurred in 1998 when Lister set out on patrol. The moment a bear approached, Lister rose up on his hind legs, and his stance frightened the bear, which went on its way with a roar.

"During the state of war he was never afraid, not even with all that artillery and aerial bombing, he held his position with dignity. On the command 'guard', not even the devil dared approach the person he was guarding," the soldiers told the Čojstvo portal.

He whimpered for the last time on Easter Sunday, 1999. He stayed with his sergeant at the time, Ivan Vasojević "Jaguar", until the very end. In that action at Opljaz, near Musina Kuća, both of them were killed in the first burst of fire, and Predrag Bogosavljević, Milenko Božić and Darko Bjelobrk lost their lives alongside them. The first burst cut them down, the second squad heard Lister howling, and when the next burst came, nothing more was heard.

Source: Nezavisne