Remembrance Sunday & The Purple Poppy
If you have visited our shop this week, you will have seen our purple poppy window display. The purple poppy has long been a symbol of remembrance for animals lost in service but until recently was much less well known than the traditional red poppy. The aim of the purple poppy is to give the animals who served and continue to serve the recognition they deserve, and to ensure they are not forgotten.
Animals like horses, dogs and pigeons were often drafted into the war effort, and those that wear the purple poppy feel their service should be recognised.
We thought we would share with you a few stories of some amazing war dogs and their sacrifices-
Judy
The only dog to be registered as a prisoner of war, Judy spent World War II with the British Navy in Asia. Her story is one of survival, capture, and courage.
Bing
A German Shepherd paratrooper with the British 13th Parachute Battalion, Bing jumped out of a plane over Normandy on D-Day. He sniffed out enemies, stood watch, and located traps and mines. After the war, Bing received the PDSA Dickin Medal, the United Kingdom's highest honour for military animals.
Mali
An eight-year-old military dog who detected bombs and insurgents for the British special forces in Kabul. Mali was injured by three grenade blasts but persevered through the mission. He received the PDSA Dickin Medal, which is similar to the Victoria Cross for animals.
Treo
A Labrador with the Royal Army Veterinary Corps, Treo located an improvised explosive device (IED) that was about to be triggered by soldiers. Treo is credited with saving many lives and was awarded the PDSA Dickin Medal.
Jack
An Airedale Terrier, Jack was used to send a message to headquarters to request reinforcements for a trapped battalion. Jack made it through enemy lines to deliver the message, but died from his injuries.
It was on the beaches of the Barry Buddon military training centre in Angus that Lt Col Edwin Hautenville Richardson first proved that man's best friend could follow him to the front lines. Richardson was living in Carnoustie in the run-up to World War One when he demonstrated how dogs - in particular Airedale Terriers - could be trained to carry out a range of military tasks, from carrying messages to locating injured men.
Other countries, including France and Germany, were already using dogs in a variety of roles, but it was Richardson's work in Scotland that convinced the British High Command that animals had a role to play. Richardson, and his wife were eventually asked to set up the British War Dogs training school at Shoeburyness, Essex, where they trained hundreds of hounds for service in both world wars.
The Red Cross used them as first aid carriers. They had a little package around their neck with medication in it, and were used to find wounded soldiers on the battlefield. Richardson would actually pay unemployed locals to come and be the injured and dead people lying about the dunes so the dogs could find them.
Recruits for Richardson's Shoeburyness school were recruited from Battersea Dogs Home, and strays were sent in from police stations around the country. After an appeal was put out for volunteers, one woman wrote in saying "I've given my husband and my sons, and now that he too is required, I give my dog."
The dogs were trained to wear gas masks and navigate the treacherous and often terrifying conditions of the front lines. Richardson's work continued right into World War Two, although the school was moved to Bulford, in Wiltshire.
“Remember them kindly, as you walk through life, for they too served proudly, to help make things right”- Santina Lizzio