Mali, a British Military Working Dog, is being awarded Britain’s prestigious Dickin Medal for animal bravery. This lil guy sniffed out Taliban militants and their booby traps in Afghanistan back in 2012.
The veterinary organization People’s Dispensary for Sick Animals, which awards the Dicken Medal, describes Mali’s courageous work:
Mali was sent through direct fire on two separate occasions to conduct searches for explosives. He also indicated the presence of insurgents numerous times, giving the assault force vital milliseconds to engage the enemy in close quarter combat.
Mali was seriously injured by three grenade blasts; the first two explosions caused injuries to his chest, front and rear legs. A further blast detonated close to his face, causing the loss of Mali’s front tooth and damage to his right ear.
My question is: when is Christopher Nolan directing the film adaptation of Mali’s life?
Since 1943 the Dickin Medal has been awarded 69 times to pigeons, dogs, horses, and one cat. And the history of animals fighting in combat is pretty wild in general. The New York Times reports on one American pigeon, GI Joe, who saved a thousand or so lives in World War II by flying with a message to not bomb an Italian village that the British had taken over. There’s also the cat Simon who protected food and caught rats on a navy ship and this “beer-drinking” duck Siwash who was a mascot to the Marines and fought another rooster during the 1943 Battle of Tarawa.
I hope one day I, a human, can grow up to be a dog like Mali!