Look-alike Rimshot stands in for the dog Gander during the presentation of the Dickin Medal to Hong Kong veteran Fred Kelly. Holding Rimshot is owner Marc Cote.

“It’s an honour just to be able to put my hand on this dog,” said Hong Kong veteran Fred Kelly as he patted a huge black Newfoundland dog in a touching ceremony at the official residence of the British High Commissioner in Ottawa.

Kelly was attending the Oct. 27 ceremony where the Dickin Medal was posthumously presented to Gander, the heroic Newfoundland dog that he handled during the fall of Hong Kong in 1941. Standing in for Gander was Rimshot, a look-alike substitute owned by Nina and Marc Côté of Bainsville, Ont.

The Dickin Medal, often referred to as the “Animals’ Victoria Cross”, is given by Britain’s People’s Dispensary for
Sick Animals. Named after the dispensary’s founder Maria Dickin, the medal recognizes animals displaying conspicuous gallantry and devotion to duty while associated with or under the control of any branch of the armed forces or civil defence units during World War II and its immediate aftermath. Between 1943 and 1949 the medal was presented to 54 animals. The one to Gander is the first presentation in more than 50 years.

Sir Roland Guy, the past chairman of the society, presented the medal to Kelly in the ceremony attended by 23 members of the Hong Kong Veterans Association of Canada. Also attending were High Commissioner Sir Andrew Burns and other veterans and officials. Kelly then presented the medal on behalf of the Hong Kong Veterans to Canadian War Museum director Joe Geurts. The medal and an explanation will be part of the museum’s permanent display on Hong Kong.

As the mascot of the Royal Rifles of Canada, Gander travelled with the unit from the Gander airbase in Newfoundland to Hong Kong. The Royal Rifles and the Winnipeg Grenadiers were poorly equipped and outnumbered when the Japanese invaded. During the fighting around the Lye Mun Barracks Gander actively engaged the enemy on three documented occasions. First by running, barking and snapping at the invading Japanese troops. Another time he forced a group to retreat and change direction. Finally when a group of wounded Canadian soldiers were pinned down under intense fire, Gander picked up a live grenade and ran with it in his mouth until it exploded, killing the dog instantly.

Guy said that it had been so long since the society had considered the awarding of a medal there was no procedure in place. However, once the facts of the case were presented, the Council of Management approved the award without hesitation.

He spoke of some of the other animals that had distinguished themselves, earning the Dickin Medal. Among them is the pigeon Beach Comber who while serving with the Canadian Army brought back news of the disastrous raid on Dieppe, France, in August 1942. The cat Simon was a hero of the 1949 Yangtze Incident in which communist rebels on China’s Yangtze River held the British ship Amethyst captive for 101 days. The crew’s meagre supplies were steadfastly protected as Simon killed a rat a day.

Also attending the ceremony was Eileen Elms, 67, a member of the Legion’s Gander Branch who remembers when Gander was named Pal and would pull the children of servicemen at the airbase in a sleigh. “We heard the story of his courage after the war but when you area child you never know whether or not to believe what the grown-ups say.” she said.