Blondi

Blondi

Adolf Hitler holding Blondi on a leash.
Species	Canis lupus familiaris
Breed	German Shepherd
Sex	Female
Born	1941
Died	29 April 1945(1945-04-29)
Nation from	Germany
Owner	Adolf Hitler and family
Offspring	Wulf and four other pups

Blondi (1941 – 29 April 1945) was Adolf Hitler's German Shepherd, a gift as a puppy from Martin Bormann in 1941. Blondi stayed with Hitler even after his move into the Führerbunker located underneath the garden of the Reich Chancellery on 16 January 1945.

Hitler was reportedly very fond of Blondi, keeping her by his side and allowing her to sleep in his bed in the bunker. This affection was not shared by Eva Braun, Hitler's companion (and later his wife), who preferred her two Scottish Terrier dogs named Negus and Stasi (or Katuschka). According to Hitler's secretary (Traudl Junge), Eva was irritated by Blondi and the level of attention Hitler devoted to her, and was known to kick her under the dining table.

Blondi played a role in Nazi propaganda by portraying Hitler as an animal lover. Dogs like Blondi were coveted as "germanischer Urhunde", being close to the wolf, and became very fashionable during the Third Reich. Blondi died from poison; Hitler ordered his physician, Dr. Stumpfegger, to kill her. According to Albert Speer, Hitler killed Blondi because he feared that the Russians would capture and torture her after overrunning the bunker.

In March or in early April (likely 4 April) 1945, she had a litter of five puppies with Gerdy Troost's German Shepherd, Harras. Hitler named one of the puppies "Wulf", his favorite nickname and the meaning of his own first name, Adolf ("noble wolf"). and he began to train her. One of Blondi's puppies was reserved for Eva Braun's sister Gretl. Eva sent Gretl a letter containing a photo of Blondi and three of her puppies, Gretl's being indicated with an arrow.

During his military service in World War I, Hitler rescued a stray white Fox Terrier named "Fuchsl". Hitler had great affection for the dog, and, when he was not on duty at the front, he would spend much of his free time playing with the dog in the barracks. Hitler was profoundly distraught when he lost him.