New scheme to care for 250 West Midlands Police dogs

A new animal welfare volunteer scheme has been launched as part of protecting police dogs working for West Midlands Police.

The project, announced by West Midlands Police and Crime Commissioner (PCC) Simon Foster, aims to ensure the highest standards of care and welfare for the force’s 250 police dogs.

It consists of independent volunteers, including vets and dog experts, who will inspect the force’s dog kennels, training methods, vehicles and breeding programmes.

Welfare of police dogs became of particular concern in 2018 after an incident regarding another force, when a West Mercia Police dog died of heatstroke, after being taken ill in a force vehicle with a faulty fan in Worcester.

“West Midlands Police dogs serve our communities and help to keep us safe. The care and welfare of our working dogs is therefore of utmost importance,” Mr Foster said.

The move demonstrated the force’s commitment to “accountability, transparency and the highest standards of care and welfare for our dogs”, and encouraged people to join the volunteer team, he added.

On the day West Mercia dog Ivy died in Worcester, in July 2018, temperatures reached 26C (78.8F) before she was found unresponsive in a “climate-controlled police vehicle”.

Her handler had been attending a training session, while Ivy remained within the climate controlled pod with another dog in the back of the police vehicle.

Because of the hot day, the vehicle’s engine was left running to allow the air conditioning to work.

However, a review, carried out by Staffordshire Police, found an extractor fan in the vehicle was malfunctioning.

The report stated that Ivy was left unchecked for two hours.

Speaking about the initiative volunteer Mark Doggett, who works for Guide Dogs UK as a training behaviour specialist, said: “We’ll be looking at and monitoring the welfare of police dogs, where we’ll go out to training days and where dogs are deployed from, making checks to see that high standards are met.

“It’s important because if the welfare of the dogs is at an optimum, West Midlands Police will get the most out of them and it’s only right they’re cared for properly as working dogs.”

Chief Constable Craig Guildford said the dog unit was an “essential part of our force”.

“It is vital that we look after these incredible animals,” he said.

“The Animal Welfare Volunteer Team will help us maintain the highest standards of care and ensure that our dogs are well-treated and well-trained to serve our community effectively.”