From abandoned puppies to Durham police dogs
PD Jasper didn’t have the best start in life - he was found abandoned in a sweltering greenhouse at just seven weeks old last summer.
Rescued by a kind lady in Manchester, she soon realised that the Belgian Malinois was extra special.
He had lots of hidden talents that made him an ideal police dog candidate, so he was handed over to our puppy development programme at 11 months.
PD Axel found himself in the same sad situation when he was abandoned at 12 weeks old in carboard box outside the Salvation Army, in Darlington.
The fellow Belgian Malinois was whisked off to the vets and soon adopted by Chris, who very quickly discovered that Axel was full of mischief and had a strong character.
Again, contact was made with the Durham Police Dog Support Unit and Axel was also accepted into our puppy development programme.
The duo started their training course alongside PD Dutch, a German Shepherd who came to the unit at 12 months old from one of our breeders.
All three hit the ground running, jumping straight into the ten-week intensive training course.
And this week they all became officially registered police dogs, passing their final assessments with flying colours!
PD Jasper, now 18 months, is teamed up with PC Dan Cuthbertson, specialising in general purpose policing.
PD Axel, now 14 months, has joined forces with PC Paul Cooper and became the force’s youngest licensed police dog.
And last but not least, 14-month-old PD Dutch will now serve with handler, PC Laura Linskey, to hunt out suspects and search for missing people.
We wish them the very best in their careers.