My name is Adam Paton and I have been a front line Police Officer for the last 13 years. I have served all of this time working in various busy Bristol Stations carrying out numerous rewarding roles, some of which include a tutor constable (an officer who shows new probationary constables life on the streets) a community beat officer, working in a plain clothes pro-active team, and an off road motorcyclist. However, with what many have described as an almost obsessive interest in dogs (I have had numerous pet and family animals and watch and read anything dog/ wolf related!) I finally succeeded in realising a life-long ambition two years ago when I was successful in my transfer to the Police Dog Section. I work out of Bower Ashton Mounted and Dog section and I currently handle two Police dogs.

Taz, a long-coated male German Sheppard - unsure of his exact age as he was rehomed from a pub in London. (He was bought as a security measure but was to much for them to handle as he wouldn’t let people in the pub so was extremely bad for business.) We found him by chance in nearby kennels and, after being assessed by instructors, we both underwent an intensive training course. Taz is a general purpose police dog trained in obedience and agility, cross country and urban tracking of offenders who may have fled the scene of a crime; searching and sniffing out hidden offenders, be that in a building or outdoors, in all environments; locating property that may have been discarded by an offender; crowd control in public order situations (football or street disturbances); chasing and detaining (with his teeth) a fleeing criminal or protecting his handler (myself) from an attack from the same. He also engages in large scale searching for missing and vulnerable people.

When off duty, both dogs live at home with me and are very much part of the family with their own kennel in the garden. I’m a family man with two children yet the dogs demand a lot of time and dedication when not at work and sometimes (just like us all) will even argue and squabble at home. Therefore being a dog handler is not just a job it’s a lifestyle.

Zeus is a black two-year-old Labrador. He is a proactive, drug-search dog that is trained to detect life-destroying illegal drugs such as cocaine, crack cocaine, heroin, methamphetamine, mdma (ecstasy), cannabis resin, cannabis bush and dried magic mushrooms. Zeus is not addicted to drugs, he is merely taught that if he searches for the smell of the drugs and this could be literally anywhere, in cars, boats, coaches, houses, gardens, lanes then he has to do one thing - "freeze". He knows he will then be rewarded with lots of play. In fact both these dogs ask only one thing for their loyal service and that is their favourite toys (a tennis ball and a chunky rubber kong!).

A typical 3.00pm to 11.00pm late shift could technically start at 10.00am for me as once my children go off to school I will have to exercise the dogs letting them out to do their morning "ablutions", a quick brush out of their kennels and their coats in preparation for work later.

2.40 pm arrive at Bower Ashton and load dogs into rear cages of dog van and get vehicle ready for patrol. Water for dogs, training equipment, tracking lines, harnesses, leads, toys etc. I will book out one gramme of training sample drugs and lock in the vehicle safe for on-street training. I then check emails and write up the reports and paperwork. After that I will check the briefing and latest criminal intelligence for the area I primarily cover in the north of the city where I can target my patrol.

3.30 pm called to a house to search with Zeus. The house has been raided for drugs and a quantity was found by colleagues on entry. Zeus searches the whole house and gardens and locates a set of electronic drugs scales hidden in the cushion seats of a sofa.

At 6.00pm I resume patrol, and after carrying out a few routine vehicle stop checks, I’m in the middle of issuing a possible ticket for traffic offences when a foot-chase ensues with district officers in a nearby part of the city. Much to the relief of the offending motorist I ran off, leaving him with a quick telling off and drove at speed with blue lights and sirens, to assist my colleagues. The offender has made off through gardens and when I arrive Taz and I commence a thorough search of lanes, sheds and gardens. Regrettably time has elapsed and we are unsuccessful due to the time of day and the number of people around at this time. We do find a woollen hat in a hedge which we recover for future forensic examination.

It's now 7.30pm and we carry out a targeted patrol of an area experiencing problems with anti-social youths. We see a small crowd and find out what they are up to. Some meander off, others peer into the back of the van only to be greeted by TAZ and his loud barking.

8.00pm and it's another blue light drive across the City to an alarm activation of a warehouse. The doors are found to be insecure so, armed with a torch, Taz and I search its entirety. No one is found and the premises are secured.

At 10.00pm we meet up with another handler in a quiet and dark trading estate to do some training. The handler hides in some bushes and Taz is sent to sniff him out. He does and is rewarded with his toy. I then place out some drugs trying to mimic hiding places criminals are known to use and we try to make the training as realistic as possible. At 10.20pm after a quick flask of coffee, we part company and carry on our patrol.

10.40pm - a local unit is checking a known criminal driving a car who is becoming aggressive. I attend and support the officers allowing them to conclude their check and gather vital intelligence.

It's now 10.50pm and we start driving back to the station ready to finish for 11.00pm when a 999 call is received. It’s a blue light run to a street where local units have captured an offender suspected of a house break. Two others have made off into lanes. Taz is taken to the last sighting of the males and we begin searching. Within minutes Taz is heard barking at a male curled up in a ball in hedges. He’s arrested and Taz is showered with praise and then we are all joined by the force helicopter. They guide us to nearby gardens and we locate the third male hiding behind fencing. All three are arrested and the adrenalin rush reminds me why I really enjoy doing this job. However it's then off to write statements and postpone the reports I was intending to write at the end of shift at 11.00pm. Thinking “I must do that tomorrow”

At 12.30am I empty the van and head off home with the dogs. However they need to be fed and allowed their night time ablutions! They are then bedded down for the night before I can think of sorting myself out. I go to bed hoping that the dogs will not be getting me up too early in the morning.

Adam Paton
Dog Handler