A Soldier Turns Veterinarian.
Heroes Remember
Transcript
We come to a dugout and I says now go in the
dugout and see if there is anybody hurt there
that I could do him up or something like that
so I called down and there's nobody in.
I couldn't hear anybody so I came out,
I met a, what I met was a horse, big horse,
big artillery horse and he was walking
towards me, and he kind of neighed you
know when he saw me, oh he was having
a great time and I went up to him and
my God he had a hole in his shoulder
I could lay my fist in.
There was a junk of shrapnel
into that from a gun, from a shell,
exploded and I took that, I just took my
hand like that and grabbed that and
hauled that junk of shrapnel off like that
and he just looked around at me and
ninnied “eeeeehhh...” you know, and
I took my dressing and wrapped
that all up and I left him.
And I looked back every once in a while
and he was still looking at where I was going
and he'd nod his head whenever I saw him,
my God I never seen anything just like...
the same as human.
Description
During a recce for wounded soldiers, Mr. McLeod instead finds a large draught horse with a fist-sized piece of shrapnel in it's shoulder. He removes the large piece of metal and dresses the wound with his own field dressing.
Russell McLeod
Russell McLeod was born on October 9, 1899 in Liverpool, Nova Scotia. His father was a fisherman, and prior to his enlistment, they fished together. Mr. McLeod joined the 219th Battalion in 1916 and trained at Camp Aldershot, Nova Scotia. He was sent overseas that fall, and joined the 25th Battalion in France. He served during Canada's 'Last Hundred Days', seeing action at the Hindenburg Line, Cambrai and Mons. After the armistice, he served as a member of the Occupation Army in Germany.
Meta Data
- Medium:
- Video
- Owner:
- Veterans Affairs Canada
- Duration:
- 1:18
- Person Interviewed:
- Russell McLeod
- War, Conflict or Mission:
- First World War
- Branch:
- Army
- Occupation:
- Signaller
Related Videos
- Date modified: