Judy (dog)

This article is about the english pointer. For the boxer dog, see Punch and Judy (dogs).

Judy
Judy on the deck of HMS Grasshopper
Other name(s)81A Gloegoer Medan
SpeciesDog
BreedPointer
BornFebruary 1936
Shanghai, China
Died17 February 1950(1950-02-17) (aged 13–14)
Tanzania
Resting placeNachingwea, Tanzania
OccupationShip's mascot
EmployerRoyal Navy
Years active1936 - 1946
Known forJapanese Prisoner of war
AppearanceLiver and white markings
AwardsDickin Medal

Judy (1936 – 17 February 1950) was a ship's dog aboard HMS Gnat and Grasshopper stationed on the Yangtze before and during World War II. She proved able to hear incoming aircraft, providing the crew with an early warning. After part of the crew transferred from Gnat to Grasshopper in June 1939 the ship was sent to Singapore after the British declaration of war on Germany. There she was aboard the ship during the Battle of Singapore, in which Grasshopper evacuated for the Dutch East Indies. It was sunk en route and Judy was nearly killed, having been trapped by a falling row of lockers. She was rescued when a crewman returned to the stricken vessel looking for supplies.

On the deserted island with the surviving crew, Judy managed to find a fresh water source, saving them all. They made their way to Singkep in the Dutch East Indies and afterwards to Sumatra aiming to link up with the evacuating British forces. After trekking across 200 miles of jungle for five weeks, during which Judy survived an attack from a crocodile, the crew arrived a day after the final vessel had left and subsequently became prisoners of war of the Japanese. She was eventually smuggled into the Gloegoer prisoner of war camp in Medan, where she first met Leading Aircraftsman Frank Williams, with whom she would go on to spend the rest of her life. Williams convinced the camp Commandant to register her as an official prisoner of war, with the number '81A Gloegoer Medan'. She was the only dog to be registered as a prisoner of war during the Second World War.[1]

She moved around several more camps, and survived the sinking of the transport ship Harugiku Maru where in the aftermath she saved several passengers from drowning. Les Searle from Grasshopper smuggled her once again into the next camp, where she was reunited with Frank Williams. After the end of the war, Judy's life was put in danger once again. She was about to be put to death by the Japanese guards following a lice outbreak amongst the prisoners. However, Williams hid the dog until the Allied forces arrived. Searle, Williams, and others smuggled Judy back to the UK aboard a troopship and she spent the next six months in quarantine after arriving. She was awarded the Dickin Medal by the PDSA,[2] considered to be the animals' Victoria Cross.[3] Judy died in 1950 in Tanzania from a tumour, after travelling with Williams there to work on a groundnut food scheme. Her Dickin Medal and collar were subsequently put on display at the Imperial War Museum as part of 'The Animal's War' exhibition.

  1. ^ Cite error: The named reference pdsapresented was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  2. ^ "Dickin Medal dogs". People's Dispensary for Sick Animals. Archived from the original on 12 February 2010. Retrieved 14 September 2014.
  3. ^ Cite error: The named reference medalawarded was invoked but never defined (see the help page).