11/11/2025
It's Remembrance Day and while we remember the people who died, were injured or had their lives forever changed by war, we must also remember the war's forgotten - the animals, who have also suffered and died in countless numbers due to human-created conflicts that were - and continue to be - imposed upon them through no fault of their own.
From insects to whales, animals were casualties both in and outside of direct combat during times of war including family pets, zoo animals, farm animals and wildlife.
In 1943, the founder of the UK-charity People's Dispensary for Sick Animals (PDSA), Maria Dickin, created the Dickin Medal for animals who have served in war. The Dickin Medal is the animal equivalent of the Victoria Cross medal for outstanding acts of bravery.
To learn more about the Dickin Medal and some of its recipients, please take a moment to check out this link on the PDSA web site: https://www.pdsa.org.uk/what-we-do/animal-awards-programme/dm-80
Lest we forget.
(Photo description: A carrier pigeon being released from a port-hole in the side of a tank near Albert, August 9, 1918.
Photo credit: Second Lieutenant David McLellan; Part of the Ministry of Information First World War Official Collection, Imperial War Museums.)
