Explosive rats
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Dogs were not the only unfortunate animal victims of experimental war weapons. The Special Operations Executive branch of the British military also used dead rats that were filled with small explosives, according to Military History. The plan was to infest the German's coal supply with the rats, which would then detonate once they were unknowingly shoveled into a broiler at a military base or of a steam engine.
The rats were not used as expected because the Germans discovered the device, but, according to The Guardian, they did cause some disruption. Records from the Special Operations Executive branch showed that the German's discovery of the device prompted a massive search operation for more explosive rats, The Guardian reported.
The largest gun ever used in battle
Eager to invade France, Nazi leader Adolf Hitler demanded a new weapon that could easily pierce the concrete fortifications of the French Maginot Line — the only major physical barrier standing between him and the rest of Western Europe.
In 1941, the year after France fell, German steelmaker and arms manufacturer Friedrich Krupp A.G. began constructing Hitler's Gustav gun, according to the documentary "Top Secret Weapons."