Sheila (dog)

Sheila
Species Dog
Breed Border Collie
Sex Female
Nation from United Kingdom
Notable role Sheep dog
Owner John Dagg
Offspring Tibbie
Dickin Medal

Sheila was a dog who received the Dickin Medal in 1945 from the People's Dispensary for Sick Animals for bravery in service during the Second World War. She is the first non-military dog to have received the medal, which was later sold at auction alongside the medals of her owner, John Dagg, for £25,300 by Sotheby's.

Dickin medal

External images
John Dagg and Shiela

On 16 December 1944, a Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress from the Eighth Army carrying a full payload of bombs crashed into the Cheviot Hills on the border between England and Scotland.[1][2] Two local shepherds, John Dagg and Frank Moscrop headed up the mountainside with Dagg's sheepdog Sheila to investigate and see if there was anything they could do to help.[1] The ongoing blizzard reduced the visibility on the mountainside to the bare minimum and the duo had to rely on Sheila to track down the aircraft.[3][1] She tracked four of the airmen who were in a nearby crevice to escape the weather, and took the two shepherds to their location. Together they led the airmen back down to their cottage, arriving as the bombs on the B-17 detonated.[1] Because of their actions, Lt George Kyle, Sgt Howard Delaney, Sgt George Smith and Sgt Joel Berly survived the crash.[4]

For the rescue of the airmen, Sheila was awarded the Dickin Medal by the People's Dispensary for Sick Animals.[5] It is often referred to as the animal equivalent of the Victoria Cross.[6] It was the first time that the medal had been awarded to a non-military dog, this time a search and rescue dog.[7] Meanwhile, Dagg was given the British Empire Medal.[1] One of Sheila's puppies, Tibbie, was later sent to the family of Sgt Frank Turner who did not survive the crash on the mountain.[4]

A film called To The Border Bred was later produced which told the story of Sheila and followed Tibbie as she travelled to South Carolina.[8][9]

The two medals, along with Dagg's First World War medals and newspaper clippings about the crash,[2] were sold by Sotheby's auction house on 13 December 2005 for £25,300 (ca. $40,488.00 American dollars).[4] It was projected to raise around £30,000.[2]

See also

Notes

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 "PDSA Dickin Medal auctioned at Sotheby's". People's Dispensary for Sick Animals. 15 December 2005. Retrieved 16 September 2014.
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 "WW2 dog's hero medal up for sale". Evening Chronicle. 13 December 2005. Retrieved 16 September 2014.
  3. ↑ "Later Trent Buses Soon". Nottingham Evening Post (20887) (British Newspaper Archive). 4 July 1945. p. 1. Retrieved 16 September 2014. (subscription required (help)).
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 "Top dog's 'VC' goes under hammer". BBC News. 13 December 2005. Retrieved 16 September 2014.
  5. ↑ "Dickin Medal dogs". People's Dispensary for Sick Animals. Retrieved 14 September 2014.
  6. ↑ Long, David (2012). The animals' VC: for gallantry and devotion: the PDSA Dickin Medal - inspiring stories of bravery and courage. London: Preface. ISBN 9781848093768.
  7. ↑ Charon & Charon (2005): p. 94
  8. ↑ "Sheepdog Sheila's film bow". Berwick Advertiser. 31 March 2014. Retrieved 16 September 2014.
  9. ↑ "To the Border Bred — The Border Collie Story". Shadowcat Films. 2013. Retrieved 22 September 2014.

References

  • Charon, Sandra; Charon, Harry (2005). Planet Dog. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Co. ISBN 9780618517527.
  • Long, David (2012). The animals' VC: for gallantry and devotion: the PDSA Dickin Medal - inspiring stories of bravery and courage. London: Preface. ISBN 9781848093768.