Owner of retired police dog backs calls for financial support
Heidi owns Donja, who needs ongoing medical treatment
The owner of a former Police Dog in Wiltshire has told us it can very difficult to insure pets that have served on the front line.
It comes amid calls from the Thin Blue Paw Foundation to make financial support for ex-service animals mandatory.
The charity has set up a petition for police dogs to have a pension.
Heidi Collins, who owns retired PD Donja, told Greatest Hits Radio that many companies won't cover former police dogs.
She said: "I think there's only one that I know of that will. And even then, if they've been medically retired or they retire from old age, at say seven or eight, they're probably more than likely going to have multiple pre-existing conditions that won't be covered by insurance."
Heidi added that leaves her with a constant worry of "what happens if?" over Donja's medical conditions or if something happens to her that her insurance doesn't cover.
Heidi, who works in pet insurance, explained that there are concerns over a dogs bite risk, but those fears are misplaced, thanks to the training Police Dogs receive and the commands they respond to.
She said: "Often these dogs are so highly trained, they're trained to bite on command, and not bite when not commanded to, unless there's a certain set of circumstances which would be very rare outside of work.
"So they're more likely to not bite, compared to some dogs that maybe haven't had any training and in some cases do bite and are insured."
Dog pension would provide safety net
Heidi told us that some form of dog pension would help in easing some of those concerns around insurance, while also aiding day-to-day life for Donja.
It would also help pay for further physio and hydro therapy for her medical conditions, which Donja was having whilst serving.
Heidi said it would help enrich Donja's life in retirement: "We could maybe then afford to get her extra treats, hire private fields where she can go off lead without having to worry about other dogs."
She told us that Donja has been an amazing addition to her family.
Heidi said Donja has helped with her own health struggles, ensuring she gets out for a walk everyday and providing comfort.
"She really knows when I'm not feeling well as well, so she'll come up for a cuddle," she said.
'They give up their best years to the job'
The Thin Blue Paw Foundation supports retired police dogs across the country, providing more than £380,000 for life-saving operations, medication and therapy treatments to help our four-legged friends live a long, happy and healthy retirement.
Thin Blue Paw Foundation Chairman Kieran Stanbridge said: “Police dogs give the best years of their lives to the job. They throw themselves into dangerous situations without a second thought, they show unwavering loyalty to their handler and their job, and they give so much to help fight crime and keep the public safe.
“During their careers they receive the very best care and support from the force they serve with but, as soon as they hang up their harness, they’re on their own, and the responsibility for their often-expensive care falls to their ex-handler or new owner.
“We believe that the Home Office who allocate funding to police forces nationally have an ethical and moral obligation to these dogs and shouldn’t turn their backs on them when it’s time to pay them back for everything they’ve done.
“That’s why we’ve launched our campaign today calling on the Government to introduce measures that ensure all retired police dogs receive support – or doggy pensions – when they retire.”