Banned Breeds, a Fire Detection Dog and a Harris Hawk Animal Saints and Sinners

Good boy. Nearly half of Britain owns a pet.

BANGING ON THE DOOR It's the council and the police! Open the door, please!

But man and beast don't always live together in harmony.

I have reason to believe it is your dog

and you've had it for a fair few years and not two weeks.

When things go wrong, animal wardens are there to protect our pets.

And keep their owners in check.

I'm not having my dog taken!

I love you too.

But for some of us, our animals are more than just pets.

I wouldn't know what to do without him.

They can change and even save lives.

I owe my life to these horses.

This is Animal Saints And Sinners.

DOG BARKS

THEY BREAK THE DOOR IN Police! Police!

Coming up,

police support is needed to seize two pit bulls in East London.

I'm seizing your dog under the Dangerous Dogs Act.

Can you take him to the toilet first, then?

In Salford, dog wardens are on the hunt for the owner of a dog

that has been running all night on its own.

At a bit of a loss with this one.

Come here, good boy.

We meet a very important member of the fire service.

He's really quickly found that one. He's jumped straight up on the bed.

Oh, look, lovely.

And a bird of prey that has brought one young boy out of his shell.

It's like being in school on your favourite subject, only better!

Like any inner-city borough,

Newham in East London has its fair share of dogs.

DOG BARKS

And while there are many responsible owners

and well-behaved dogs in the area, there are some who are not.

From now on, this cannot ever happen again, or you will face prosecution.

The borough's Animal Welfare team works closely with

the police and they have warrants on any cases involving dogs.

That's either seizing illegal breeds or giving the police support

if dogs are present and they need to search a property

and deal with the suspects. That includes drugs raids.

The first one we do is for a drugs warrant,

we have Animal Welfare with us because we've been

told there's supposed to be about up to 12 dogs there.

We're going to force entry.

And we're going to secure all the people inside,

we're going to handcuff them and put them in one room.

All of the dogs will be dealt with by Animal Welfare,

who are going to round the dogs up and put them in one room. OK?

It's all about teamwork and Animal Welfare manager

Tina Delaney regularly works alongside PC Shaun Pickering.

THEY BREAK OPEN THE DOOR Police! Police!

Police!

Quickly! No dogs.

This time, nobody's home, and there aren't any dogs present.

But as they leave, Tina's trained eye spots something of interest.

Shaun! Now, quick!

Hello. Hiya. Can you just stay there for a minute? Hello!

Is your dog friendly? Very friendly. Hello.

Is that your dog? Yes.

What type of dog do think it is?

Well, when he was a puppy, it was supposed to be a Staff cross.

And what type of dog do you think it is now?

Well, it looks like a red nose, doesn't it?

And you know those dogs are illegal, do you? Well, yes,

but since I've had him, I've changed my life for this, if you

have a child, you have to change, you have to change your lifestyle.

Yep. If you find that you've got one of these, rather than let it go

or give it to somebody else, you have to change your lifestyle.

And my life is wrapped around this dog. What's his name?

Stitch. Stitch. Hello, Stitch! Hello!

Everybody knows him around here. Right, OK.

And even when there's other dogs on the street,

and they're barking at him, he wants to go to the toilet. Right.

DOG BARKS Hello, Stitch.

Do you want to come with me to take him to the toilet?

I'm only going to the green. No.

I'm not going to come with you to take him to the toilet.

Can you come and see me again? I can't come and see you again.

He needs to go to the toilet. I do understand that, but the thing is, it's a prohibited breed,

it's illegal, so I'm seizing him under the Dangerous Dogs Act.

Can you take him to the toilet first, then?

I can't take him to the toilet, because he's in a public place.

You know what'll happen?

He's going to be in a bad attitude if you don't take him to the toilet.

I can't take him to the toilet, because he's illegal.

DOG BARKS I can.

You can't take him to the toilet, sir, he's illegal,

I can't let you leave with him. I understand what you're saying. OK? So what we're going to do...

DOG BARKS You're making him do that.

Come on, Stitch, Stitch is just excited, he's fine.

He wants to go to the toilet. I do this every day.

Some people don't realise that they are getting a pit bull,

people will obtain dogs through internet sites,

or from a friend or from advertising at a local corner shop,

and they don't actually realise that the dog is a pit bull.

The difficulty with that is obviously,

usually, as the dog gets older, people start saying,

oh, he's got a pit bull, and people become quite fearful, because it's

been a family pet, and then you have the other scale

where people knowingly go out and breed pit bulls, knowingly go out

and sell them, and want a dog that is a status dog for image or,

you know, to train to be aggressive and it's very difficult when you come across people

that actually have a nice family pet, that is a very loving dog,

but it's a pit bull and they haven't obtained it for that reason.

Good lad! Come on, Stitch! Good lad!

Can you get his name and address for me, please?

Good boy, Stitch! Excuse me?

Yep. DOG BARKS

Just show him a bit of love. Yes, we do, it's fine. That's all right.

He's a good lad. Have you got any ID on you? No, I haven't.

Come on, Stitch.

Good lad. Good boy.

How old is Stitch? Three. Three years old. And is he vaccinated? Yes.

He ain't chipped yet. No, no, when did you get him vaccinated?

Round about two and a half, three years ago.

Right, it has to be done on an annual basis, so he has to be

vaccinated every year, so he's not been done within the last year? No.

OK, I need to look at all the information you have

given me, obviously, Stitch is of a nice temperament. No, that's fine.

I have no concerns about him at all. I need to look at who owns your property

and whether they give you consent to have the dog. Yes.

If you do, we'll get some forms signed

and look at making him legal for you and having him returned.

I've got nobody else. Yeah. So, he's everything to me, you know?

So, this is the telephone number you need to ring.

You can ring up every day and see if he's OK, that's not a problem.

You can ring up and see how he is and what I will do is,

today is Tuesday, by the end of tomorrow, I would have looked into

everything and let you know whether he can come back to you or not.

Excellent. OK.

The other thing is, obviously, you know, he ain't been away from me.

No, that's fine. I have walked him every day of his life.

So, if he's loud... He's never loud.

No, dogs deal with being in kennels really, really well,

most of the time.

Usually, it's the owners that kind of don't cope very well,

but he is in a really good place, he's going to be well looked after,

try not to worry, I know it is distressing, but try not to worry.

A pit bull can be made legal through the court,

as long as the dog doesn't pose a danger to the public, is neutered,

microchipped, insured and kept on a muzzle and lead in public places.

And with updated legislation,

the owner has to conform to certain rules too.

When we seize the dog, we're not just looking any

more at the temperament of the dog. With the change in legislation,

now, it's the whole picture, so if the person has a recent

criminal history, that it's violent, then we would bring that in.

If the person is aggressive and nasty during the process,

then we will bring that in as well.

Now, it's about looking at the whole picture,

not just looking at that dog.

Because it's a combination of dog and owner that makes a dog dangerous.

He'll be absolutely fine and he will be well looked after.

You can see he ain't a bad dog. Oh, no, no, a little bit fat!

He's a little bit fat! Do you reckon? Yeah, he is!

The chip and that as well. That's why he's fat. Chips! Chips!

No, not chips! A chip! Oh, I thought you meant you were feeding him chips,

that's why he's fat! He has custard creams, that's why he is fat.

He'll be microchipped, so if he's made legal, he has to be..l Do I have to pay for that?

We'll talk about that, because there are organisations

that if you struggle with the cost of that, that can help you. Cheers.

See you now, thank you. I'm upset, but... Yeah. All right. Bye.

Find out later if Stitch the pit bull is reunited with his owner.

HE WHISTLES Sometimes, relationships with an animal build over time.

Sometimes they can happen in an instant.

And the impact can change lives for ever. I'm Bradley Church.

I'm 12 years old. And I have got Asperger's syndrome.

Bradley Church was born in 2001.

Bradley was a big boy.

He was nine pound five, he was very happy, a bouncy child.

But as he grew older, his parents, Sarah and Keith,

knew that something wasn't quite right.

When Bradley was a toddler,

we noticed that he wasn't the sort of child that you could

put in the corner and just leave to their own devices,

we wasn't sure if it was just normal behaviour, to be expected,

or whether there was some sort of slight issue going on.

I remember being at friends' houses and when it was time to go,

we'd just pick Bradley up and say, look,

come on, it's time to go now, and he would make a really big fuss

and he would be, like, kicking and maybe screaming,

if he didn't want to go, and that was obvious he was having fun

and everything, but we didn't put anything behind that, we just

thought he was being awkward and didn't want to come away.

And the challenges continued.

When Bradley reached his fifth birthday, the time

came for him to start primary school.

School was the hardest part of it, actually.

I really didn't like going into school because at the start,

I actually got bullied.

His anxiety mainly came from going to school.

It was noted that he didn't join in games so easily.

Bradley used to stand on the sidelines,

didn't want to get involved quite so quickly

and his anxiety would build and build, because he didn't want to go

to school, so it would mean me literally carrying him into school.

He'd kick me, he would, you know, try to kick teachers.

And that was very difficult to understand

and establish what the problem was.

Let's go.

My life was...

It was on-off.

I had problems, I didn't know what to do,

I couldn't have, like, an interest and I just found it a bit hard.

And his behaviour when he was at home was becoming increasingly

difficult to deal with.

We'd end up, well, sort of fighting sometimes, literally.

I would have to protect myself, really, more than anything,

and poor old Bradley, his emotions were all over the place,

he would go on this high of anxiety and aggression,

but when he came down, he would think he was the worst child in the world.

It was really hard on my parents,

because they didn't know either, so they treated me as if

I was just misbehaving, because they didn't understand, in a way.

And I didn't know how to put it across,

because I was so young when I had it.

Finally, at the age of six, Bradley was diagnosed with Asperger's,

a form of autism that makes communication

and interaction with others more difficult.

When we got the final diagnosis, it was a mixed bag of feelings.

There was the label, as it were, put on Bradley,

but at the same time, it gave us something then that we could

identify and put measures in place to help as best we could.

Although there was a diagnosis, Bradley's behavioural problems

continued and more worryingly, it was clear that he was suffering.

When he used to come down from those situations,

he would feel so bad about himself,

he often talked about taking his own life, and for a child

of sort of eight or nine to say that to you, is devastating.

But that is how down he would become,

so his emotions were completely all over the place.

He didn't know how to deal with it,

so something really did need to change.

But what Sarah and Keith didn't know was that a ninth birthday

surprise would provide that crucial change.

Bradley had a good interest with animals and birds.

He had a birthday coming up,

so we looked into doing something to establish that interest more,

really, and sort of kind of help

him have an experience rather than just a present.

When we saw the advert for the Hawking Centre,

it was a great idea and one that we thought would actually help him.

When Mum and Dad told me

that I was going to the Hawking Centre, I didn't really know

how it was going to be,

and I wasn't like jumping for joy, like I usually do when I go now.

Because I had never really experienced it before

and it was a first, like, proper animal encounter for me.

And when the time came for Bradley's visit,

nobody could have predicted his reaction.

We're going to take Jess out for a flight.

And let's hope she behaves herself.

All of my senses just went and the only sense I had was my hearing

and most importantly, my sight, and I, oh, it was just heart stopping.

HE WHISTLES

It was like being in school on your favourite subject, only better.

And I was like, right, oh, my God, this is what I want to do.

And there was like a little spark inside me.

I've never experienced this before,

that was the first time I'd had that feeling.

And I haven't had that feeling at all with other subjects,

so, I thought that was the one for me.

This is Jess. Jess is a Harris hawk.

I really like Harris hawks,

because I think they're the ultimate hunting partners.

They're a true bird of prey.

I like the characteristics, I like the way they look,

that lovely, nice, brown feathers in there. I just love them.

I remember the particular falconer saying to us, how enthusiastic

he had been, as soon as we got back, it was just a mine of information.

And obviously, the impact of flying those birds,

he just couldn't stop talking about it.

Cinders does the epic owl face dance. Watch. Cinders, cinders.

HE WHISTLES Cinders. Look at that.

HE LAUGHS AND WHISTLES

The impact of that day was obvious. He got a real interest in it.

He started making pictures and folders with birds of prey

and finding out a lot of information about them.

He wanted books on birds, so, it certainly did have an impact.

The positive effect on Bradley was overwhelming.

And Sarah and Keith were keen to find a way of helping him

stay calm and focused when he was away from the birds.

This is the card Keith made up for Bradley. This is his control card.

This was taken on his first visit in 2010 and it is a really lovely

picture, actually, and he is right up to the bird, so, it just shows

that he's got no fear of them and he is quite happy to be around them.

The card helped me because it was something to look back on,

a good memory.

And when I was in hard times, I would look at that, I would

have some time to myself, gather my thoughts and I would be thinking

about flying them birds and that just took all of the bad stuff away.

But Bradley's new passion had not only been a calming

influence for him, it's had an impact on the whole family.

Since Bradley has visited the centre, his aggression has almost ceased.

Which is much, much better for me, as a mum.

We've got a better relationship, it makes life easier for all of us.

He's much more happy. You know. He's just a much happier child, really.

So, I'm very grateful for his visit there.

And Bradley's parents weren't the only ones to notice

big improvements in his behaviour.

Certainly, his primary school noticed the difference.

He made improvements in the classroom too, so it's been great, really good.

I'm very proud of him. He really enjoys it.

And it's great to see him happy in an environment he loves.

And he's established at school to work towards his GCSEs,

because he wants to be a falconer, so I don't see how you can

ask for more than that, if that's the greatest impact it's had.

And if it becomes a career for him, I think he will be more than happy.

Oh, look, lovely.

I want to do it for a career when I'm older now.

And I want to own my own Harris hawk when I get older.

So, basically, it is just for experience and I love it.

In Salford, Greater Manchester's sprawling urban borough,

the dog warden service are always kept on their toes. What we got?

German Shepherd by the name of Rocky. Beautiful dog. Hello, Rocky.

Hello, handsome. Good boy.

They deal with the entire borough's lost, stray and dangerous dogs.

Come on, mate. Good lad. Good lad.

Today, dog control officers Will Harris

and Erica Eaton are out patrolling in a popular Salford park.

Hey, hey!

You're mobile, aren't you, mate?!

And it's not long before they get a call-in about a Staffy

roaming the streets with no sign of an owner.

We just had reports of a Staffordshire bull terrier

coming onto the park on the side of the park,

which is just down there.

So, while Will's having a look around in the van,

I'll have a look around on foot.

I have me squeaker, me treats and me lead.

No-one has yet reported the dog missing.

It could have been abandoned,

but it may be the case that the owner simply hasn't noticed it gone.

Because it's such a huge park, and there are

so many different entrances, it literally could be anywhere.

SHE WHISTLES

After a long search, there is no sign of it in the park.

They'll continue to keep an eye out for it.

But for Will and Erica, it's an ongoing

battle to keep the streets of Salford free of roaming dogs that

can be a danger to the public and can be at risk of getting injured.

No, it's there, in front of this house here. I've just seen a dog.

A little Shih Tzu has just run across the road. There it is. Hello!

Come on. DOG BARKS

Come on! SHE SQUEEZES HER SQUEAKER

Well, we're going to have to try and catch it.

I can't let it run around like that.

It's been groomed, so it looks like it's looked after,

because it's had its hair cut.

Sometimes, while we are out on patrol we will spot a dog just

wandering down the road on its own,

but our priority is getting that dog safe,

whether we have to chase the dog for ten minutes or five hours,

we will pursue the dog until we catch it.

Is that your dog? Yes.

Is your mum in? My mum? Yeah. Can I have a chat with her?

Can you make sure your dog's kept in?

Make sure she's got a collar

and a tag on just in case she does get out again.

But especially with this road being so busy. Yes, yes.

Just be careful.

When, today? Just now. Yes.

We were at another property down the road and she's come running out,

down the road.

Just be careful in future, especially with this road being so busy.

DOG GROWLS

He'll be a pit bull any day.

Make sure, if you can, put something across there. Yes, I know.

I know it's the children's holidays, and they are going to be in and out

on a nice day, but make sure that the dog stays indoors or in the garden.

The Shih Tzu is back safe with its owners and Will and Erica make

their way back to the pound, where a Staffy has been handed in.

Will has a theory that it may be the dog they've been looking for.

Let's see if we're chipped.

No chip. Obviously, no...

That's just the lead. There's no collar and tag.

The dog has been handed in to us.

We believe it could be the dog from the park

that we were looking for earlier in the day.

The dog was found in the same street,

obviously in the same area, and it fits the description of the dog

so it could well be, and that will be a bonus if it is

because it is one more off our list of roaming dogs.

With no tag on its collar or microchip,

they'll need to use other measures to track down the owners.

The photograph now is for our social media page where we're going to

put the dog on and hopefully we'll get some information

from members of the public who may know where the dog comes from.

He's been found with a lead, so Will and Erica are hopeful,

but we'll find out later if the dog's owner does come forward.

Over 200 miles south, in Newham, East London,

one of the dog warden service's priorities is protecting

the public from dangerous dogs and banned breeds.

We are just getting a couple of graspers that one of the police

officers will hold, so that if we do need them, they can hand them to us.

It saves us going in there heavy-handed,

especially if the dog is a nice dog and are not needed.

Often if people see a grasper straightaway,

it can make them quite upset.

But we've got them there for safety reasons,

just in case the dog does become aggressive.

Brilliant, thank you.

Animal welfare manager Tina Delaney is working with the police

who have warrants to seize potentially dangerous dogs.

When you have a warrant, you can enter the premises

and we need to be able to do that with police.

We do that for our protection

and they deal with the humans on site and we deal with the dogs.

Tina has applied for a warrant to seize one of two dogs that

local residents suspect to be a pit bull, an illegal breed.

Hello, good morning. I'm from the London Borough of Newham.

This officer is from the Metropolitan Police.

Do you have a dog on your premises? Yes.

OK, we've got a warrant to have a look at your dog.

The police officers have got the warrant with them.

Are your dogs friendly? Yeah, he's all right.

What breed are your dogs, sir?

What breeds are your dogs?

He's only a puppy. Yes, what breed is it? Yes.

Sit!

Hello.

Come on, then.

What breed do you think he is?

Hello.

Hmm?

Do you not understand what I'm asking you? No.

What breed of dog do you think you have? A Staff, I think.

You think it is a Staff, are you sure? Yes, yes, he is all right.

How old is he? He is about three.

Three years old? Yes.

Hello, darling. Hello.

Has he been vaccinated? Yes.

When did you vaccinate him? I don't know, because I was in...

Does he belong to you, does he? Yes. Right, OK.

Do you want to take your dog for an assessment to see

if she is a prohibited breed, OK?

So I'm going to seize your dog under the Dangerous Dogs Act. OK?

If he is not a prohibited breed,

he will be returned to you within the next couple of days. OK.

If he is a prohibited breed... You might want to get your other dog

because your other dog has gone for a walk.

While Tina takes the dog safely to the van,

the police officers attempt to track down the loose Staffy.

As well as concerns about the suspected pit bull,

there have also been other complaints.

The other complaint we've had is about dogs going wandering off

on their own. They are not doing that.

Well, he is obviously used to going wandering off on his own, isn't he?

Do you want to talk to my wife?

Thank you. Hello.

'Hello?'

Hello, I am from the London Borough of Newham Animal Welfare Service,

my name is Tina Delaney.

We've got a warrant to seize one of your dogs.

What type of dog do you think you own?

Tina is trying to get as much information as she can about

whether the owners are aware that they may have a banned breed of dog.

Right, OK, so the dog belongs to you and your wife, does it? Yes.

Right, OK, so what's your contact number, please?

This is quite serious, can you stop your gardening for a second?

Can you tell me what your contact number is, please?

Yeah, what is it?

Chico, get inside. What is it, then?

Hey, put that away, man.

And before long, some family members arrive,

questioning where the dog is.

As you can see, that's not a pit bull.

What do you mean? It's a Shar-Pei.

OK...

Is that your father? You're havin' a laugh! Right, OK.

So I've just explained to your father the dog is going to be assessed.

If it is not a pit bull type, that is fine, and it will come back.

What, you're going to bring it back here, yeah?

If it's not a pit bull type, then it will come back, yes.

If it is, then we will talk to your mum

and your father about possible options.

You have got nothing better to do in the morning, have you?

We've seized the dog to see if it's a type. It is very difficult

to tell in that moment, especially as they're a bit irate.

We don't want to get it out and assess it here,

so we are going to take it back and assess it.

The mother's confirmed on the phone to me

that the dogs do run out, they run around.

But she said, "It's no problem, they do come back,

"or if they're gone a long time, we do come and find them."

So, obviously, that's a problem.

Zip the dog will be fully assessed by an expert

in the next couple of days.

If it is found to be a pit bull,

Newham Council will advise the court on whether the dog should be

returned to the owners with certain restrictions.

Find out later if Zip gets reunited with its owners.

I couldn't imagine life without my dogs now.

Good boy, Zip, lay down.

Good boy.

They come to work with me, they live with me, they are my life.

In the UK, there are around 9 million homes with a family dog.

And Nikki Harvey's home in Hertfordshire is one of them.

But unlike most people, her pets are a crucial part of her working life.

Nikki works for Hertfordshire Fire and Rescue Service

and has been a firefighter for 20 years.

For the last seven, she has been a Watch Commander with

the Fire and Investigation team, which examines how fires start.

The role is extremely different to being a firefighter.

The scenes we attend are more after the fire -

obviously the fire's been put out and fully extinguished.

Reqs, Nikki's two-year-old Labrador, is one of only 17

fully trained Fire and Investigation dogs in the UK.

And he's been working with her for a year.

At home, he is like any ordinary dog.

But when he's on duty, he's quite a different animal.

He knows that as soon as Nikki puts on his protective boots,

it is time to go to work.

We'd find it extremely difficult to investigate fires

that are definitely of a suspicious or deliberate nature without

the use of Fire Investigation dogs.

Their speed and accuracy and locating these traces of ignitable liquids

at fire scenes makes our job so much easier.

A dog's sense of smell is 1,000 times greater than humans.

After training, it means that

Fire and Investigation dogs can quickly sniff out different

quantities of ignitable liquids, such as petrol, white spirit,

paraffin, diesel or lighter fluid.

It would probably take human investigators several days,

sometimes weeks, to establish any trace of ignitable liquids

that may have been used to start a fire deliberately,

as opposed to the dogs going in the scene - that can take minutes.

After a fire, Reqs is trained to go into a building to sniff out

accelerants to verify whether the fire was accidental or arson.

Each year, he's given an assessment to test his skills which

means his training is always ongoing.

I'm going to simulate that somebody started

a fire on top of the building,

and they've accidentally dropped a glove fleeing the scene

which I'm going to contaminate with some white spirit,

so we are going to place that on the roof

and then we are going to get Reqs and take him up in the aerial ladder platform,

take him on to the roof, and get him to search that area

to identify the missing glove that's been dropped.

OK, let's go.

Reqs needs to be competent with the aerial ladder platform

which is used to get to upper floors

where the stairs may have been burned away.

Any evidence that Reqs locates for us at the fire scene in a

deliberate or suspicious fire then forms evidence for part

of criminal proceedings in a court of law, so the whole process,

from start to finish, of investigating a fire is extremely rewarding.

This way. Good lad. Steady.

Good boy.

Good lad.

So, you see now he is pointing with his nose,

he's freezing at that, and that is a positive identification that there

are two drops of white spirit on that glove, so he now gets his reward.

Good boy! That's a good lad!

And obviously, lots of praise because he has done his job,

he's found what we have asked him to find.

Who's a good boy?

Good lad!

From the outset, training a Fire and Investigation dog

is based on reward.

The dogs need to display a huge drive

to want to locate their favourite toy initially.

Once you've established that big drive to want to look

and find their favourite toy, that's when we can start introducing

all the liquids that we are asking them to find.

The next practice exercise for Reqs is in the station smokehouse

where the firefighters test their breathing apparatus.

It's just an area of rooms, hallways and corridors and things.

I'll just do the two drops of petrol in the corner here.

There we go.

Let's put some upstairs.

I'm doing a slightly larger spill this time.

Although his body language would tell me there is

something in this room, that is not good enough for us,

we need to know where that liquid is located.

Reqs is clever enough to say, "There's something here,

"I know there's something here I'm trained to find in the form

"of ignitable liquid," but obviously

he can't establish for us whether it's petrol, white spirit or paraffin.

The lab analysis can tell us exactly what that is.

Let's go in the little bedroom here.

Just a small spill down there.

On average, Fire and Investigation dogs are called upon to

investigate around 80 fires a year.

Are you ready? Go on, go find it.

This way. Reqs, down!

'The dogs can get into those confined spaces'

obviously far more easier than humans.

Good boy.

Good lad.

Good boy. Good boy!

OK, so his breathing has now changed. And he's slowed himself down.

Again, I am picking up his body language.

He's picking up on something,

obviously he hasn't located exactly where it is at the moment.

Obviously he's had a good sniff of the area.

And there you go. He's pointing with his nose

exactly the area where we put the petrol earlier on.

Good boy.

Find some more!

He's really quickly found that one, he jumped straight up on the bed

and he's indicating that one straightaway.

After each find, Reqs' favourite toy is his much deserved reward.

Good boy, there's a good lad!

Yes, who's a clever boy? Yes. Good lad.

Good boy!

Even after seven years of working with the dog, I can always put

something out for a relatively small training scenario

and he still amazes me what they are able to find.

Reqs had been working for Nikki for a year

and although he's just started his career, he's already become a hero.

Who's a good boy?

Hey? Clever boy.

Whilst searching a house to see if ignitable liquid had caused

a gas explosion, he and Nikki found more than they had bargained for.

During the course of searching the rubble of the collapsed house,

we were alerted to a whining noise

and while Reqs was searching the rubble,

he immediately went over to the area where the whining noise was

coming from, and to our amazement, a collie's head popped out.

They'd had investigators within that scene for over 48 hours

and nobody heard a dog whining at all.

And instantly, within seconds, really,

of Reqs entering the scene, the dog was whining,

so we firmly believe that the dog was sensed by another dog being on scene.

It's quite possible, without the use of the dog,

that Carrie may never have been found alive.

And to our amazement, she is absolutely fine after that.

Together, Nikki and Reqs form an unstoppable team.

We work together very closely so we have a really big bond between us

and a lot of trust between us.

I really can't imagine working and doing my role without Reqs.

Up in Salford, dog control officers Will and Erica are on a mission

to keep the dogs of Salford safely with their rightful owners.

On a day-to-day basis, our main priority is a stray dog.

It doesn't matter what you are doing, as soon as that call comes

through, it's a case of jumping in the van and off you go.

We've just had a call from the office to say that somebody's found

a brindle, unknown breed dog, a male, wearing a collar,

and a snapped lead,

so we're just going to find out what's happening.

Whereabouts did you find the dog? What's the story?

We found the dog this morning, just outside.

Just outside your property?

Yes, and somebody said it has been on the road,

the main road, at six this morning. It had nearly been run over.

Have you got bitches? Yes, two.

Any in season? No, no.

Is the dog that you found a male? Yes, a male.

Right, it could be...

Has he got a snapped lead or something attached?

Yes, a snapped lead. Right, OK.

Do you want to come round the back? Yes, no problem.

Thank you.

Hello.

He's lovely, he is, he's got a lovely personality.

Haven't you, hey, buddy? You have.

Let's get him secure first, there we are.

Oh, behave. So, that's what he came with?

Yes, that is what he looked like.

But they said at 6.30 in the morning,

he had been on the main road and had nearly been run over, so...

Hello, mate! Right, he's got a chip, that's good.

He could have been out all night, you know. You never know.

Yeah, quite possible. Let's take that off him.

He looks like a well fed dog and everything, so...

Yes, he looks like he has been tied up somewhere.

But, the size of him, he has just snapped it,

because it is not the strongest of chains.

He's not a guardian dog or anything like that, is he?

No, definitely a pet. Yes, it's a Staffy, isn't it?

He's lovely. He's not a full Staff.

Not a full Staff, no. Look at his face. He's got floppy ears!

His ears, yes.

Right, well, he's got a chip, so we'll check him over.

Oh, he's got a chip? Yes. Yes, he's chipped.

Absolutely brilliant.

So, see you later, buddy. Hey, you have a good day.

Right, thank you so much. Thanks a lot.

Right, no problem, thank you.

Come on, thank you.

There have been no recent reports of missing Staffies.

So the first thing Will does is trace the dog's microchip details.

We've found a stray dog and he's got a chip.

But it's not good news.

Unfortunately, all three numbers we have are disconnected.

We've not seen any passers-by, have we? No.

To ask.

The park, we could try there. It's not too far away.

Are there any shops on the main road? There's some shops on the main road.

I'm not sure if there's a dog groomers.

We could try the vets down the road as well.

I'll put him on the social networking sites now and see

if anybody recognises him.

Without any leads to follow up,

Erica and Will resort to trying to canvass any local knowledge.

I'm just going to have a look round,

see if there's anybody about that might know him.

Nobody about at all.

If Will and Erica can't find the owner of the dog, it'll be

the council's responsibility to keep him for seven days.

After that time, they'll do their best to re-home him.

Lots of different roads leading off, so he could have come from anywhere,

so it's hard to pinpoint where he may have actually come from

so a bit of a loss with this one.

They're not willing to give up without a fight...

..and, before long, they get a lead.

Did you find it on the estate? Yes.

It's somebody that lives up near Prospect Road. Prospect Road?

Yeah, up that way, cos they walk it on my dog field. Prospect Road, OK.

They walk it on the dog field up at the top of the allotments,

so he does live on that estate.

OK, thank you very much indeed. Thank you.

If you don't ask, you don't get, so we might be able to get

the dog back home, so that would be brilliant. We'll go now.

Finally, they hit the jackpot.

We were just driving up to Prospect Road where the lady had told us

that she knew the dog from and we saw this gentleman walking down the road,

so we asked him was he looking for his dog

and, yeah, sure enough, he was.

It's not actually his dog, it's his daughter's.

They've only been in the area a week, so that's how he's escaped

and he's just showed me the chain that he snapped,

so we'll go and sort him out now.

There we go. Come on. Who's that, Bust?

Buster, come here.

So you've only just moved to the area?

He's only just come. You need to get a thicker chain for him.

The privet's there and that's where he's going through,

that's the only part we've not panelled off.

That's how he's got through. That's how he's got through.

There's his chip number and that's the number you need

to phone to change the chip over to your daughter's address, OK?

Give them a call, get the details changed over, get a tag as well.

OK, well, as I say, I'll sort it. That's it. No problem.

Well, he doesn't know the area, does he?

And there's a main road over there

and if he likes to get out, if he likes to have a walk. All right.

That's it. Thanks for your help.

No, thank you. No, no problem.

He's been missing since this morning, say, seven o'clock.

Very relieved, not for me, but my daughter, cos it's her dog.

She's been worried about him.

Well, sometimes you have to play detective,

ask in the local newsagent, vets, go to the park.

We'll give the finder a quick ring,

he'll be happy that we've got the dog back to its owner.

It's a great result for Will and Erica,

as Buster is now safe and sound back at home.

Back in East London, Animal Welfare Manager Tina Delaney has two dogs

in the kennels that have recently been seized from their owners.

Zip was taken away because he's thought to be a pit bull.

Zip is going to be assessed to see if he's of type,

so I'll be assessing him today and then tomorrow we'll have

an independent expert that comes in to assess him

in addition to that.

If he is of type, because of the family's history,

we will not be supporting...

The council will not be supporting an application for him to go back.

If he isn't of type, then we will microchip him, offer them

a neutering voucher and send him home again.

We will often come across people

that know what type of dog they've got and some...

A lot of the time people will say to us, "It's got part pit bull in it.

"He's not a full pit bull, it's got part pit bull in it."

It's a pit bull type and in the UK, we define that as a pit full type.

It is either a pit bull or it isn't,

and a lot of people will be kind of confused about the legislation,

saying, "Yeah, but my dog isn't a dangerous dog."

We're not looking at the temperament of the dog,

but, by definition, the breed - it's classed as dangerous.

Also in the kennels is Stitch,

a red-nosed pit bull who was seized from its owner

on the public highway.

DOGS BARK Good boy, Stitch.

Stitch is going to be going home. He's a really nice boy,

he's got a really nice temperament. He is a big softie, he's a bit tubby.

He's a bit on the tubby side, so when he's castrated,

he might put on a bit more weight,

so we're going to advise his owner on a proper diet

and adequate exercise so he doesn't become a bit bigger than he is.

He has a lovely temperament.

His owner's been really cooperative through the whole process,

so there's no problem with him being made legal and going home.

He's a lovely boy.

Oh, gone again.

Will and Erica never did hear from the owner

of the Staffy handed in to the kennels.

They had to treat it as abandonment and it is now being re-homed.

Zip the dog was assessed and confirmed as a pit bull type.

Legal action is being taken against the owners

under the Dangerous Dogs Act

and because of this he is not allowed to return home.

He's still in secure kennels and soon a court will decide his fate.

ALL: Happy New Year!

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