PDSA Gold Medal
The PDSA Gold Medal is an animal bravery award that acknowledges the bravery and devotion to duty of animals. It was created by the PDSA in 2002, and is now recognized as the animal equivalent of the George Cross.
An animal can be awarded the PDSA Gold Medal if it assists in saving human or animal life when its own life is in danger or through exceptional devotion to duty. The medal can also be awarded to animals in public service, such as police or rescue dogs, if the animal dies or suffers serious injury whilst carrying out its official duties in the face of armed and violent opposition.
As of 2007, the PDSA Gold Medal has been awarded 12 times since first awarded in November 2002. All recipients to date are dogs:
| Date of award |
Citation | Date of incident |
|---|---|---|
| November 2002 | Endal - a assistance dog who (without having been taught to do so) intuitively pulled his disabled owner into the recovery position following impact by a car, then covered him with a blanket and also retrieved his mobile phone and pushed it against his face. Not until his owner had regained consciousness did Endal leave his side to fetch help. | May 2001 |
| Metropol Delta Monty ("Monty") - a police dog, who overpowered a man wielding a knife despite being stabbed several times | Feb 2001 | |
| Bulla - a police dog who was killed in 1990 after being stabbed while apprehending a man brandishing a butcher's knife. (Posthumous) | May 1990 | |
| April 2006 | Blue - a police dog, who despite being stabbed while hunting a violent suspect, followed the man to his hideout and assisted in his disarming and arrest | March 2005 |
| Zoltan - a police dog who was stabbed while attempting to disarm a man who had been threatening members of the public and the police with a knife | April 2005 | |
| Orca - an assistance dog who fetched help when his wheelchair-bound owner fell into a ditch and was pinned face-down next to the waterline, under her motorised chair. Although the first person he encountered believed he was lost and tried to lead him away, he broke his training (which normally anticipates following people) and then undertook a long distance journey, to find help that could be persuaded to follow him back to the scene of the accident. | May 2003 | |
| June 2006 | Dylan and Cracker - Dylan is part of the Northern Ireland Search and Rescue Dog Association (SARDA), and Cracker (his brother) is (or was) the only dog in the UK trained to locate bodies in water.
The award covers multiple events in 1999: in March, Dylan saved the lives of four students trapped on a ledge 250 feet above the ground in "exceptionally bad weather", staying with the group until their rescue. Also in November, the two dogs took part in rescue work following the 1999 İzmit earthquake in Turkey, locating both survivors and the bodies of victims.[1] |
1999 |
| July 2006 | Bamse - mascot to the Royal Norwegian Navy minesweeper, Thorodd, in World War II, he knocked a knifeman into the sea, and later saved a crew member from drowning. (Posthumous) | Winter 1941 + Autumn 1942 |
| July 2007 | Police dogs Vinnie, Billy and Jake, for "life saving work" during the 7 July 2005 London bombings. | July 2005 |
The Dickin Medal, a separate award also administered by the PDSA, was established by Maria Dickin, founder of the PDSA, in 1943, to acknowledge acts of outstanding bravery by animals serving with military forces in theatres of war, and is considered the animal equivalent of the Victoria Cross.
References
- "Animal Bravery Awards: Gold Medal". PDSA. Retrieved 30 October.
{{cite web}}: Check date values in:|accessdate=(help); Unknown parameter|accessyear=ignored (|access-date=suggested) (help) - "Gold medals for 7/7 sniffer dogs". BBC. Retrieved 4 July.
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