Sam

Sam – PDSA Dickin Medal 59

Date of Award: 14 January 2003

German Shepherd, Sam, was a member of a Royal Army Veterinary Corps Dog Unit serving with the Royal Canadian Regiment during the conflict in Bosnia-Herzegovina in 1998. Along with his handler, Iain Carnegie, they were part of a NATO peacekeeping force tasked with protecting civilians in the town of Drvar.

It was a conflict where the term ‘ethnic cleansing’ originated and communities on all sides had been forced from their homes to be systematically replaced by newly-dominant ethnic groups. In Drvar, the largely Serbian population had been displaced by Croatians at the height of the conflict. With the peacekeeping force in place, the displaced Serbians had begun to return.

While on patrol with his unit, Sam and his colleagues came under fire from a lone gunman. Undaunted by the gunfire, Sam chased him to a local bar, pinning the gunman down until Sergeant Carnegie arrived to disarm and arrest him.

Less than a week later, Sam performed another life-saving feat, showing once again an astonishing determination to protect both his colleagues and civilians. Tensions between the Croatians and the returning Serbs were running high. Many Serbians had taken refuge in a compound when it was attacked by a group of 50 Croatians armed with crowbars, clubs and stones. Sam and his team fought their way inside the compound and held off the baying crowd until reinforcements arrived and order could be restored. ‘I could never have attempted to carry out my duties without him’, Ian later reported.

Sam died from natural causes in 2000. His life-saving actions were formally recognised with a posthumous PDSA Dickin Medal on 14 January 2003.

Ian, who by that time had become Sergeant Carnegie, accepted the honour on his behalf. The citation read: “For outstanding gallantry in April 1998 while assigned to the Royal Canadian Regiment in Drvar … This dog’s true valour saved the lives of many servicemen and civilians during this time of human conflict.”

More about PDSA