Salute Lands Adolf in the Dog House

A German who trained his dog to raise his right paw in a Hitler salute is to appear in court tomorrow, German prosecutors said last night.

The black mongrel sheepdog, called Adolf, is alleged to have performed the trick in at his master's request in front of two policemen in March last year.

The officers were called in to question the man - identified only as 54-year-old Roland T - after he raised his own right arm in a Hitler salute.

While the policemen were investigating, the owner turned to his dog and said: "Adolf, sit. Make the greeting."

The man - who lives in Berlin - is also accused of wearing a T-shirt with a picture of the Nazi dictator on several occasions, and of shouting Nazi slogans.

A spokeswoman for Berlin criminal court yesterday said that Adolf, who has big ears, would not be called as a witness.

It was too early to say whether Adolf's owner was mentally responsible for his acts, she added. Nazi slogans and greetings are illegal in Germany, where the Third Reich remains a touchy subject.

To get around code symbols within the neo-Nazi scene, the law also forbids words or actions that can be interpreted as condoning Nazism - even ones performed by a dog, the spokeswoman said.

If convicted, Adolf's owner faces three years in jail, officials confirmed.

He would also lose his dog, they added.

Last night Carola Ruff, of a Berlin animal welfare group, said it might be possible to train Adolf to stop performing the salute "with a lot of love and dog biscuits".

She told the Berliner Kurier: "Raising a paw is what dogs are born to do."