War hero – and man’s best friend

War dog

Treo and his handler, Sgt Dave Heyhoe have been ‘partners’ for five years and were eventually deployed to Afghanistan in 2008, where their main job was to search for arms and explosives. According to BBC News, during his time in Sangin as a forward detection dog in 2008, Treo found two hidden “daisy chain bombs made out of multiple explosives wired together” which would have otherwise claimed many lives.

Treo has now retired to being a family pet. He is the 63rd animal to be honoured with the Dickin Medal since it was instituted in 1943 by Maria Dickin, founder of People’s Dispensary for Sick Animals.

He joins the ranks of 26 other dogs, 32 World War Two messenger pigeons, three horses and one cat.

Other notable recipients of this award include Paddy and William of Orange in 1944; both messenger pigeons in World War Two. Paddy travelled across the English Channel to deliver messages from Normandy for D-Day in a record breaking 4 hours and 5 minutes and William saved 2000 lives in the Battle of Arnhem.

In 1949, Simon became the only cat to be awarded the Dickin Medal for his time aboard HMS Amethyst during the Yangtze Incident, when the ship came under attack from the communists. Simon was said to have “raised morale” and “killed off a rat infestation” which had been raiding the ship’s dwindling food supply although he was injured from the attack. He averaged “a catch a day” and his devotion was said to be inspirational to the rest of the crew.

In modern times, two guide dogs named Salty and Roselle were honoured with the award as well for leading their owners to safety from the World Trade Center during the September 11 attacks.

Another dog that received the Dickin Medal was Sam, a German Shepherd in 2003. Sam was a Royal Army Veterinary Corps dog serving with The Royal Canadian Regiment in Bosnia-Herzegovina. According to the Telegraph, while serving in Drvar in 1998, Sam held off a mob of rioters until reinforcements arrived and chased down a gunman who had been attacking the battalion just days before that.

Jet of Iada, another German Shepherd was also recognised for locating a woman who was buried in debris after the building had been bombed out. He stayed with the woman for 11 and a half hours until help arrived.

These feats are proof that animals have contributed greatly in their services for man and their recognition through the Dickin Medal is well deserved. Treo’s award ceremony today will be a celebration of his efforts as well as a continued recognition and appreciation of the importance of the bond and ties between man and his ‘best friend’.

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