A campaign to raise £50,000 for a statue in Angus to commemorate the heroic actions of Airedale terriers during the First World War has come on leaps and bounds in the past few months.
The Airedale Terrier Club of Scotland breed rescue charity wants to mark the contribution the breed made in identifying the injured and delivering messages during the First World War with a large sculpture erected at East Haven beach.
The story of the breed being used during the war started in Angus, as the first dogs were trained by Lt Col. Edwin Hautenville Richardson, who lived at Panbride House, near Carnoustie.
The dogs were trained to wear gas masks and navigate the treacherous and often terrifying conditions of the front lines.
Since starting to fundraise in May the group has raised around £22,000.
The sum could potentially be doubled if an application to the Angus LEADER fund later this year is successful.
News of the campaign has spread throughout the world and attracted donations from America, Australia, Canada and Finland.
The charity’s secretary Wendy Turner, who lives in Inverkeilor, said: “Word has spread through social media and Airedale people throughout the world are keen for this to happen.
“As soon as we were able to raise £1,250, then Angus Council granted £1,250.
“Then, when we raised a quarter of the total, we were eligible for Heritage Lottery funding, which added another £10,000.
“Amazingly we got one anonymous donation of £5,500 and we don’t know who it’s from.
“We are hoping to get to around £26,000 by mid-August and then shortly after that we’ll be looking to put in an Angus LEADER application.
“If successful it could potentially match-fund and that would give us the amount we need.”
Once the funding is in place then Kirriemuir sculptor Bruce Walker will create the statue.
“Bruce has done artist’s impressions and we are really happy with what he produced. I think he has earmarked a piece of granite from a quarry near Peterhead,” she added.
“If everything goes to plan I’d hope it would be erected before Remembrance Day 2018.”
An online auction and other fundraising activity in the next month is also expected to boost the total.
The auction of Airedale-themed items is taking place on the ATCS WW1 Memorial Auction Facebook page. Bidding opens 5pm on Friday August 11 and closes at 8pm on Sunday August 13.
The group will also have a stall at Burns Dogs Day Out at Glamis Castle on July 30.
History of wartime Airedales
Lt Col. Edwin Hautenville Richardson and his wife Blanche Richardson began training Airedale terriers at Carnoustie.
The first four Airedales they trained were presented to the Glasgow Police in 1905 and were stationed at Maryhill Police Station and Queens Park Police Station in the city.
These were the first official police dogs in the United Kingdom.
British Red Cross then used the dogs to locate injured soldiers on the battlefields and also to carry first aid supplies.
When the Army saw the dogs in action they were so impressed that they were trained to deliver messages.
A war dog school was opened in Shoeburyness in Essex and the Richardsons moved there to manage the dogs’ training.
Airedales were recruited from all over the UK and some pet owners donated their Airedales to the war effort.
After an appeal for volunteers, one woman wrote in saying “I’ve given my husband and my sons, and now that he too is required, I give my dog.”