Illustrated in the photograph above, top to bottom, are two scout dog tabs for the 58th Infantry Platoon (Scout Dog), full color and "subdued", and a full color version of the unit shoulder sleeve insignia, or unit patch, for the 101st Airborne Division (Airmobile).
The 101st Airborne Division, in World War Two, was a parachute and glider "airborne" division that participated in the invasion of Normandy France, on D Day, 6 June, 1944, and fought in Holland in the famous "Bridge Too Far" campaign that failed to end the war in 1944 by making an end run into Germany through Holland. In December 1944, it gained it's greatest fame in the Battle of the Bulge when, outnumbered 10 to 1, and surrounded, it defended the little Belgium town of Bastogne, for which the entire division was awarded the Presidential Unit Citation, the first division sized element to be so awarded. Disbanded in 1945 the division was revived in 1956 as a strictly parachute division. In 1965 the division's 1st brigade was sent to Vietnam, with the rest of the division to follow in 1967. In 1968 the division was converted from parachutes to helicopters, hence the "Airmobile" being tacked onto the name. The division left Vietnam in 1972. Around 1975 the division name was changed to 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault), and it participated in Desert Storm.
All units in the Army today wear full color shoulder sleeve insignia on their dress uniforms and "subdued" versions on their work, or fatigue, or BDU (battle dress utilities) uniform. "Subdued" is the patch in only black and green, as is the lower 58th tab shown in the photograph. During the Vietnam War, all units in Vietnam switched over to the subdued version of their shoulder sleeve insignia. The 101st Airborne, the "Screaming Eagles", however were the ONLY major combat unit in Vietnam, not to go subdued; they wore the full color "Screaming Eagle" patch throughout the war, changing over to subdued, in the mid 1970's, after the war.
When the 58th Infantry Platoon (Scout Dog) deployed to Vietnam as a unit in February 1968, they wore the subdued version of the scout dog tab, manufactured in Georgia prior to their shipping out, as they were going to Vietnam and expected to be wearing subdued insignia. By February 1969, all the original extra patches taken to Vietnam when the unit went over, were all given out to new replacements (3 or 4 to a man), if I remember correctly). Any additional tabs required would be made locally and were of very inferior quality. With a new commanding officer coming in, we decided that since the 101st wore their patch in full color, we might as well go full color on the scout dog tab as well. We sent a sample to a patch company in Texas and early in 1969 we had a supply of full color tabs. The unit wore the tab in full color until it was disbanded in June 1971. This is the version at top in the photograph.
The shoulder sleeve insignia and scout dog tab were worn on the left shoulder when a soldier was a member of that unit. If the soldier went to another unit, if he had been with a unit in combat, he was allowed to wear that unit's shoulder sleeve insignia on his right shoulder. A 101st man who went to the 25th Infantry Division would wear the 25th insignia on his left shoulder and the 101st insignia (subdued on fatigues; Remember he is not in the 101st at this time) on his right shoulder. The scout dog tab was authorized for wear only in Vietnam. When I returned from Vietnam, I wore the 101st patch on the right shoulder of my dress uniform, without the 58th Scout Dog tab.
