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JUDY - P.O.W dog
Judy was an English Pointer born in Shanghai in 1936. She was given to the Royal Navy as a mascot. Judy was on active service as a member of the grasshoppers crew.
She could point out the approach of enemy aircraft long before humans could hear them.
As her ship headed for Java it was shelled and sunk. Judy survived clinging to wreckage and was pulled ashore. She then saved the men by finding a fresh water spring for them. A 200 mile trek ensued from Sumatra to Papang and all including Judy were captured and taken prisoner. At the Labour camp in Medan leading Aircraftsman Frank Williams watched her scrounging for food. In August 1942 he adopted her and shared his handful of boiled rice with her. They became inseperable. The Japanese guards hated her and tried on numerous occasions to condemn her to death. Frank risked beatings each time he intervened to stop them shooting her. Eventually he got the drunken commandent to sign papers making Judy an official Prisoner of War. Judy survived gunshots and alligater bites and would distract the guards so the prisoners could find food. At the end of the war Frank smuggled her onto a ship bound for England and with the help of the men got her ashore past the dock police.
In May 1946 Judy was presented with the PDSA Dickins medal.
On the 8th June 1946 Judys bark was broadcast to millions on the BBC Victory Day programme.
| Born: | 01/01/1936 |
Died: | 01/01/1950 |
Type: | Dog |
Breed: | English Pointer |
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