Potential bomb- and drug-sniffing dogs are being sought by Devon and Cornwall Constabulary as part of a major canine recruitment drive.
Devon and Cornwall police: "As long as the dogs are not aggressive or nervous we can give them a fantastic life"
Owners who have very active dogs such as springer spaniels, cocker spaniels and labradors and who may be finding them a bit boisterous are being asked to consider giving them a happier life with the police.
The Force needs six energetic dogs with a “zest for play” to join its specialist search dog unit.
Dogs will begin their training with an eight week course at Middlemoor this May, which will see the dogs learning to search for drugs and bombs.
Course instructor Pc David King said: “Most of the police dogs we use for specialist searching are rescue dogs.
“Some people may have an energetic dog they can no longer look after properly. As long as the dogs are not aggressive or nervous we can give them a fantastic life with the police dog handlers who will exercise and work them daily.”
Pc King will be handling a cocker spaniel called Jarvis who was given to Cocker Rescue, a South West cocker spaniel re-homing scheme. They contacted the Force to see if he would be suitable for training as a police search dog.
Pc King said: “Jarvis is 10 months old and has been well cared for but his energy levels were too high for his owners to cope with. I’ve now had Jarvis for several months and he’s taken to search training like a natural.”
The new recruits could potentially play a key role in ensuring public safety at local and national events including the Commonwealth Games in 2010 and Olympic Games in 2012.
“The terrorist incident that took place at the Giraffe restaurant in Exeter proved recently that we have a need for explosive search dogs and they were used effectively to search the area following the bomb blast,” said Pc King.
Anyone looking to find a new home for their dog should email Pc Martin Le Blanc at martin.leblanc@devonandcornwall.pnn.police.uk