This month in 1941, a dog in the UK became a hero in a very strange way, stopping a bomb by answering the call of nature.
This was during the Blitz, a months-long Nazi bombing campaign against London and other British cities.
Night after night, the Luftwaffe destroyed homes, factories, schools.
It was deadly and terrifying for those living in these cities.
But the British people did their best to endure the attacks, clean up the damage and help each other through the worst of it.
And not just the British people.
In 2013, there were multiple news stories out of Bristol, about a dog named Juliana.
In 1941, the Great Dane was at home with its family when a warplane dropped an incendiary bomb on the house.
Attacks like these destroyed thousands of homes across the UK, but not this one.
And that’s all thanks to Juliana.
As the Telegraph reported, “It is thought that she put out the flames by standing over the bomb, lifting her leg and emptying her bladder.”
Whether this was intentional bravery or just what a dog does when it needs to go, Juliana had very likely saved people’s lives and certainly saved the house.
Which is why the dog won an award called the Blue Cross, which had been given to military horses and other heroic animals since World War I.
Juliana was actually a two time Blue Cross Medal winner!
In 1944, she was able to warn her owner about a fire that had broken out in his shoe shop.
Though in this case, it was her bark that saved the day, not her bladder.
Starting today in Darien, Georgia, it’s the Blessing of the Fleet.
The three day festival celebrates the area’s long history with shrimp boats, but if seafood isn’t your thing, there’s also a car show, a parade and a pancake breakfast.
Urinating WWII Great Dane’s medal sold (BBC)
Dog cocked leg to extinguish Nazi bomb (Telegraph)
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Image via Wikicommons
