North Yorkshire police dogs sniff out television role

‘Dog Detectives’ followed the force's dogs and handlers on a number of shifts as they tackled the challenges of detecting missing people, fleeing criminals, firearms and drugs.

As the series begins, there’s a long overdue and emotional reunion between PC Martin Gayles and his two beloved furry work pals, PD Meg and PD Thor – who retired from the force in the summer.

Meanwhile PC Lynne Fletcher is called in to track down suspects linked to a missing bag believed to contain drugs with the help of sniffer dog PD Billy and general purpose dog PD Patto.

Later on in the series PC Gareth Gummerson attends an explosives search with his explosive detection search dog PD Isla and a property search and general purpose dog PD Dixon.

PC Martin Gayles said: “The bond between police dog handlers and our dogs is unbreakable and so it’s been an honour to be able to capture that for others to see.

“I’m proud to be part of the police dog family and be able to highlight the vital contribution we bring to operational policing.”

In addition to North Yorkshire Police, dogs and their handlers from Merseyside Police’s Dogs Section, Police Scotland’s Dog Section and The British Transport Police’s Dog Section also feature in the series.

Dog Detectives starts on Monday November 5 at 8pm on channel Quest Red.