Dyfed-Powys Police to Host Police Dog Trials

Dyfed-Powys Police is to host the Wales and South West Police Dog Trials in March 2016. ‌​‌​‌​​​‍‌​‌​​‌‌‌‍‌​‌‌​​‌​‍‌​‌‌‌​‌‌‍‌​‌‌‌‌​​

The trials, which are open to the public, will be held at Nantyci Showground, Carmarthen, on Tuesday March 8 and Wednesday March 9, 9.30am to 3.30pm. ‌​‌​‌​​​‍‌​‌​​‌‌‌‍‌​‌‌​​‌​‍‌​‌‌‌​‌‌‍‌​‌‌‌‌​​

Some 13 police dogs and their police officer handlers will take part in the annual contest, which judges the standard of a handler and a dog working as a team. ‌​‌​‌​​​‍‌​‌​​‌‌‌‍‌​‌‌​​‌​‍‌​‌‌‌​‌‌‍‌​‌‌‌‌​​

PC Clive Fairburn with police dog Aly and PC Sharon Gibby with police dog KO will be competing in the event for Dyfed-Powys Police. ‌​‌​‌​​​‍‌​‌​​‌‌‌‍‌​‌‌​​‌​‍‌​‌‌‌​‌‌‍‌​‌‌‌‌​​

The dogs will be assessed on skills which are crucial for operational policing, including agility, obedience, criminal work, searching and tracking. ‌​‌​‌​​​‍‌​‌​​‌‌‌‍‌​‌‌​​‌​‍‌​‌‌‌​‌‌‍‌​‌‌‌‌​​

The two highest scoring Welsh dogs and the two highest scoring English dogs will secure their places in the National Police Dog Trials which are being hosted by the Police Service of Northern Ireland at Belfast later in the year. ‌​‌​‌​​​‍‌​‌​​‌‌‌‍‌​‌‌​​‌​‍‌​‌‌‌​‌‌‍‌​‌‌‌‌​​

Acting Deputy Chief Constable Liane James said: “It is a great honour to be hosting the 2016 regional police dog trials for Wales and the South West. ‌​‌​‌​​​‍‌​‌​​‌‌‌‍‌​‌‌​​‌​‍‌​‌‌‌​‌‌‍‌​‌‌‌‌​​

“Not only does the prestigious competition provide an opportunity for the police dogs and their handlers to showcase their remarkable skills, it is a means of benchmarking the standard of our police dogs against a national standard in order to maintain the highest levels of service delivery. ‌​‌​‌​​​‍‌​‌​​‌‌‌‍‌​‌‌​​‌​‍‌​‌‌‌​‌‌‍‌​‌‌‌‌​​

“I wish the teams the best of luck and I urge members of the public to come along to the event and see for themselves the fascinating way our police dogs work and learn more about how they contribute to policing and keeping our communities safe.” ‌​‌​‌​​​‍‌​‌​​‌‌‌‍‌​‌‌​​‌​‍‌​‌‌‌​‌‌‍‌​‌‌‌‌​​

Judging the competition will be PC Brett French from The Metropolitan Police, PC Steve Gill from South Yorkshire Police and PC Paul House from Sussex Police. They are all operational instructors and dog handlers, with vast experience in assessing the national criteria for police dogs. ‌​‌​‌​​​‍‌​‌​​‌‌‌‍‌​‌‌​​‌​‍‌​‌‌‌​‌‌‍‌​‌‌‌‌​​

CAPTION: Sergeant Keith Gibby and police dog Roxy competing in recent police dog trials. ‌​‌​‌​​​‍‌​‌​​‌‌‌‍‌​‌‌​​‌​‍‌​‌‌‌​‌‌‍‌​‌‌‌‌​​