'We pick up the vets bills to give our former police dog a happy and comfortable retirement

A charity that supports police dogs when they retire has launched a campaign calling for pensions for all police service animals when they hang up their badges.

The Thin Blue Paw Foundation has launched a petition calling for the Government to introduce mandatory financial assistance for police dogs once they retire – or police dog pensions – which will mean new owners are not left to face hefty vet bills for dogs who often come with health and medical conditions due to their strenuous working lives.

The Foundation supports retired police dogs across the UK and has, since launching in August 2020, provided grants totalling more than £380,000 for life-saving surgeries, vital medication, and regular therapy to ensure these canine heroes live long, happy and healthy retirements and receive the treatment they need for any medical conditions they suffer.

Among those supported by the foundation is Blade, a former Cambridgeshire Constabulary police dog. He worked as a general purpose dog with Cambridgeshire Constabulary for four years until retiring at the age of five, in 2020.

He helped control crowds at public events, helped find missing people and tracked criminals and also received a commendation for tracing a gang who fled from a ram-raid incident.

His handler Paul Rogers said: “Blade was always a very balanced and biddable dog, but fearsome when needed. In training, he regularly took my colleagues off their feet when practising bite work, he was so strong!”

Blade was forced to retire early when a spinal condition caused him to limp and Paul’s partner’s daughter, Holly, decided to adopt him.

Holly said: “He had lived with Paul and my mum for years and initially hated me! But, with Paul’s help, we slowly spent time together and he began to trust me. Now, I’m his whole world; quite the turnaround!

“He generally has good health and, looking at him, you wouldn’t think there was anything wrong with him but he does require regular pain relief to help manage his condition. When he isn’t taking his medication he will limp but with it he charges around like a puppy!”

We fund his medication and help with the costs of his vet consultations.

“Obviously we think the world of him, but he’s a hero too. The least we can do is ensure he has a long, happy and comfortable 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.”

There are around 1,700* serving police dogs operating across the UK’s 45 police forces, and an estimated 100, on average, retire every year.

While the Thin Blue Paw Foundation will continue to support retired police dogs across the UK – which it’s been doing since it was launched in 2020 – the charity’s trustees want to see policy change to secure the futures of these dogs and guarantee they can access the best in veterinary treatment, therapy and medication once they retire.

The charity has launched a petition and is urging the public to get behind the campaign, which would see the Government ringfencing budget to ensure a basic level of support to the retired dogs’ new owners to ensure they are not left with the significant financial pressures themselves.

Kieran Stanbridge added: “Police dogs lead physically demanding lives and, when they retire – whether due to injury or age – they often have health problems as a result of their career, which can require expensive medication, therapy and management throughout their retirement.

“Taking on any dog is a responsibility, but taking on an older retired police dog with health problems is a huge commitment, particularly during the current cost of living crisis.

“We need to ensure that there is support in place for these heroic police dogs so that people aren’t put off the idea of rehoming them when they retire and so that owners are never faced with the heartbreaking decision of having them put to sleep because they can’t afford their treatment.

“Although we’ve worked with insurance companies over the last few years to help them launch special policies that are open to retired police dogs making it easier for owners to get insurance cover, it’s the Government’s responsibility to offer some ongoing support to these canine heroes once they hang up their harness.”