Judy: The Unforgettable Story of the Dog Who Went to War and Became a True Hero by Damien Lewis

insinging along with the ship’s company in the Strong Toppers Club, Judy had truly found her tribe.
    Chief Petty Officer Jefferey, by now Judy’s closest companion, believed their ship’s dog was developing a “human brain,” or at least a means with which to view the world of the Yangtze River gunboats pretty much as the sailors did. She appeared to understand every word spoken to her and read every gesture and expression and seemed to have adapted to the nuances of gunboat life as easily as any human crew member had before her.
    Early one morning Jefferey took Judy for a walk in the grounds of a smart Hankow hotel, a favorite with visiting Europeans. Man and dog strolled for a mile or so along the approach road, with dense jungle stretching away to their left. All of a sudden Judy darted off into the bush. Jefferey presumed she’d scented some game animal—most likely a deer, for he’d spotted their tracks already that morning.
    Moments later he heard a yelp of alarm from somewhere within the bush. He knew instantly that it was Judy. He called her, and shortly she shot forth from the undergrowth. But she was clearly very alarmed, for she was trembling from head to toe. Jefferey had never seen her acting like this before, not even after her near-death experience in the Yangtze. He called the dog to him, but instead she bounded ahead on the road, making toward the hotel and forcing him to hurry after.
    As he rushed along some sixth sense made him glance over his shoulder. There in the fringes of the bush was a large forest leopard. The thought flashed through his mind instantly— so that’s what spooked Judy . It was only when he reached the safety of the hotel that Jefferey allowed himself to imagine another scenario—that Judy had picked up the big cat’s scent and gone into the forest deliberately to distract its attention, for the leopard had in fact been stalking him!
    Jefferey would never know for sure which it was. But one thing was certain—whenever she sensed that her extended family was in danger, Judy was proving herself willing to risk all to protect them.
    Unperturbed by his close encounter with the leopard, Chief Petty Officer Jefferey decided to make full use of their Hankow stopover to put Judy through her paces as a supposed gundog. By now she was approaching eight months old, and she’d grown into a fine-looking animal—muscular, sleek and fit, with a glistening coat, and always ready to run around.
    In fact, Hankow had offered her many a chance to hone her fitness, for the various crews were forever holding intership football, rugby, or hockey matches. With both football and rugby the ball proved a little too large for Judy to master, but she had become an absolute demon at hockey. She’d grab the ball in her mouth and streak for whichever goal was the nearest, paying little heed to whichever side she was supposedly playing for. This made for an utterly impartial player, though not one who could be counted upon to boost the Gnat ’s score line.
    With serious gundog business in mind, CPO Jefferey organized a dawn hunting expedition. After an early breakfast aboard ship the crew—consisting of Jefferey and Tankey Cooper plus four other keen hunters—set off, with Judy taking up the proud lead. Beyond Hankow in the open bush there was an abundance of king quail—a game bird in the same family as the pheasant—and that was what the hunting party was after.
    At the first sign of the distinctive birds taking to the air—a flash of iridescent blue plumage above bright orange feet—the guns roared. As quail were hit and tumbled from the sky Judy looked on impassively, making no move either to point or to fetch. The men took turns using the guns while others acted as retrievers to gather up the fallen birds, and still Judy didn’t seem to take the hint or make any moves to join them.
    Finally, Tankey Cooper decided enough was enough. He bent to Judy’s eye level and gave her a little talking