Shocks the Donkey and a Serial Roaming Dog Animal Saints and Sinners

Nearly half of Britain owns a pet.

Nice one, mate.

It's the council and the police. Can you open the door, please?

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

We 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 off of me, mate.

I love you too.

But for some of 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

Coming up, meet the dog wardens in Salford

who have a little help when a familiar face finds a stray dog.

I just happened to see this dog wandering around

and it was really confused. He was breaking my heart, actually.

And meet the inspector in Scotland

who has to seize a horde of animals from a one-bedroom flat.

It was disgusting.

The cages were actually stacked on top of each other.

And we find two families whose lives have been turned around

by a couple of amazing animals.

He loves me regardless of what's wrong with me.

We have this bond, this inseparable bond.

In Salford, the Council's dog wardens,

Will Harris and Erica Eaton, are out patrolling.

This is why we come to the park...

to meet these people and these doggies.

I've got one here. I've got one for you.

This is a special one for Maggie. There we go.

As well as being responsible for dangerous dogs...

Will, be careful.

..and strays...

Is that your dog?

..the dog wardens tackle complaints about nuisance dogs.

Letting it out to foul on the green area just outside the property.

And any animals they find roaming are posted on social media sites

in the hope that their owners will come looking for them.

Puppy's missing at the moment.

Today, Erica and Will are on their regular tour of Salford's streets

looking for stray dogs.

The thing with this job,

what we've learned is every dog has its own story.

There could be 101 reasons why that dog's out on the street.

I think I've heard every excuse under the sun, to be fair,

as to why the dog's out,

but our priority is getting that dog safe.

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

we will pursue the dog until we catch it.

A lot of people automatically jump to the conclusion

that the dog owner is irresponsible

but that might not necessarily be the case.

The window cleaner might've left the gate open.

We've had recent bad storms.

So, the fence panels could have blown out

and the owner doesn't know. There could be lots of reasons.

Hello.

Erica's spotted a roaming dog that's run into someone's front yard.

Hello.

DOG BARKS

Oh, you're one of them, are you? Hey? Are you all noise?

DOG BARKS Good boy. Good boy.

Having no idea whether this dog is a stray,

Erica's immediately on the case.

Is this your dog?

No.

Come here, mate. Put this on for me. Good lad.

I've seen a little kid walk him up and down the street,

-so I'm sure you'll find...

-Do you know him?

-Where does he live? OK, yeah.

-Just a little bit over that way.

I don't know what number it is. Do you?

-Do you know if it's chipped?

-No, I don't think we know that.

INAUDIBLE

Just roaming around here.

We were just driving past and I spotted him.

-Is this him?

-Opposite the barber's.

-Is this him?

The stray dog is known to the local residents

and they say he lives just around the corner.

Will checks for a microchip but the dog hasn't got one

so they can't look up the owner's address.

Well, I'll see if the lead me home. He might take me back.

-It's the second house.

-Right. All right. Thanks very much.

-Come on, boy. What's he called? Tyson?

-Yeah, Tyson.

Ooh, Tyson is strong. Come on, mate.

The wardens decide the best option is to take Tyson

for a walk around the block and see if he leads them to his owner.

Here we go. We've got pyjamas.

-MAN SHOUTS AND WHISTLES:

-Tyson!

-Is this your dog?

-Yeah.

He's just been running around at the back on his own.

-Give me the dog.

-Come on, Tyson.

-Oi, hey, sir.

Don't do that. I'm going to walk him home for you.

Don't do that near the road. Don't do that near the road.

The owner's agitated that his dog's on a lead

and doesn't want Erica's help getting him inside.

Hey, hey, hey, calm down.

-Tell them to put the camera away or I'll smash your

-BLEEP

-in.

-Give me the dog.

-Come on Tyson.

-Oi, hey, sir.

Some people would say the best form of defence is attack

and they will literally give us four-letter word abuse

for no reason at all.

It's a shame, because we can advise them.

We can say, "Look, if your dog isn't chipped,

"we can give you some free micro-chipping advice.

"If your dog's not neutered, we can do that."

There's a reason sometimes that the dog's let out

and sometimes there isn't a reason the dog's been let out.

Some dogs get out because they want to have some fun.

We can offer the neutering,

which will stop them maybe looking for some fun with other dogs.

'We really try and help, but if they don't want to help

'there's nothing really much we can do.'

One happy customer.

Personally, I would have thrown him in the van

and took him back to work.

Situations like that it doesn't make it...

It doesn't feel like doing the right thing, giving the dog back.

Erm...dog wasn't chipped. Had no tag on.

From what the residents said, he's out quite a lot,

so we will get him again.

And next time, we won't take him back. We'll take him back to work

and they'll have to come and pick him up themselves.

We'll get him again. Don't you worry about that.

Find out later if Tyson stays put at home

and whether his owner eventually calms down.

One animal that has made a huge impact on one particular family

is not a dog or cat,

or even a family pet,

but a donkey called Shocks.

If somebody had said

that a donkey was going to change your family's lives,

you would think, "Well, no. That's...

"Why... How is that going to happen?" But it does. It actually does.

What colour is this?

When Tracy Austwick gave birth in 2010 to twins, Amber and Hope,

they were 14 weeks premature and she and her husband, Julian,

thought they were going to lose their two baby daughters.

It was all a bit of a shock, really. Erm....

They... You couldn't really see them because the babies were so small

and they were in these massive incubators

and they were all wrapped in bubble wrap.

And they were covered in wires and needles and the machines.

There was so many machines. So many drugs going through them

to keep them alive.

It was...it was really frightening. I didn't think they would survive.

But they did and, although Hope had a hole in her heart,

she responded well to treatment and began to get stronger.

But her twin was in trouble.

Amber's situation was a lot more complicated.

The doctor said that she had a very narrow airway

and, because she was ventilated,

the airway's been damaged from having the ventilator in.

So, they said she will need to have help breathing.

Amber had to have a tracheostomy -

a tube permanently inserted in her throat.

The operation happened when she was just three months old,

and by six months both twins were at home.

Now, aged three, the girls are doing well,

but daily life for Amber

has to revolve around sessions on her inhaler.

So, she has these nebulizers about three to four times a day

and one through the night.

Erm... And it just helps her...

Helps her generally to breathe...to breathe better.

So, it's quite limiting for her cos she can't talk

because the air that she breathes comes out of the tube in her neck

instead of coming past her voice box like you and I.

Amber also has cerebral palsy,

which means she isn't as mobile as she might be

and her core muscles are weak.

Hope doesn't have her sister's breathing or mobility problems,

but she does still have a hole in her heart

and both girls have struggled enormously with their speech.

Communication wise, erm,

there was no communication with Amber really at all.

Hope was really good because she started to say little words.

But then it kind of like slowed down a bit

because I think she was trying to communicate with Amber,

and because there was nothing coming back from Amber

because she couldn't talk

I think Hope's confidence, if you like, didn't grow very quick

because she really, really struggled to talk.

Tracy and Julian were dealing with the girls' conditions

as best they could but felt restricted at home.

Come on, you can do it. Put your leg up. Whoop! And put your arm up.

-Superhero!

-Superhero! Yeah!

Do your superhero.

Then things suddenly changed when another parent told them

about a surprising place that might be able to help -

The Donkey Sanctuary.

The charity rescues animals in need,

then trains them to work with children.

Children can benefit is so many different ways.

Obviously, it's very calming just stroking a donkey.

But also riding can help with a child's balance and coordination

and their muscle dexterity. There's lots of different things

that the donkeys can help the kids with.

Who are you riding, Amber?

Oh, nice flat hand.

Reach right up, both hands. And your left hand. Both hands.

And can you give him another kiss?

And when Amber and Hope arrived at The Sanctuary,

one donkey in particular quickly got their attention.

Shocks.

Nice flat hand. Can you give him a stroke?

Give him a stroke and a hug.

Oh, good. And a kiss. Lovely.

Much like the girls, Shocks didn't have the best start in life.

He was discovered on a farm in Ireland in 2010

with huge neck injuries

because he'd been tethered to a pole most of his life.

They kept either a rope or the same head collar on him,

which actually grew into his flesh.

Unfortunately, when they took the head collar off,

it left substantial damage to his neck and to his skin.

Whether out of naivety or malice, we're not sure,

they poured a cleaning fluid onto the skin,

which, obviously, left irreparable damage.

And, although the staff at The Sanctuary

have seen many cases of animal cruelty,

Shocks' injuries were the worst they'd ever seen.

He would've been in a lot of pain when the head collar was removed

and also he's got some mental scarring

in that he was not very comfortable, especially with adults and with men.

It took him a long time to start trusting people again

and that obviously started, we found, through the children.

Shocks amazed everyone with his rapid recovery

and a year-and-a-half after his rescue

he was ready to be a riding therapy donkey.

Yes. We go round.

It was basically an instant bond between Shocks and the girls.

I mean, the girls absolutely adore Shocks

and Shocks as a riding therapy donkey not only provided

the therapy that they needed,

but I think he loved them a little bit, too.

-And say, "Hi, Shocksie."

-Hello.

I did tell the girls that he was rescued, so I think that makes...

You know, it makes the girls love him even more

because they know that he's been mistreated.

And so they do. They love him a lot more for that, I think.

-Yeah. Say, "Walk on."

-Oh, good girl.

-Come on then.

-Good girl.

-We're going to go down to the wiggly pole.

-Can you see the wiggly pole?

And you see where we've got to go?

-Wheee! Good girl.

-Good girl.

And the next one. Number two. Are you ready?

BOTH: Three...

and four!

Yeah, turn. Can you see the red box? Come on then.

Can you say, "Wiggle, wiggle?" Ready?

Wiggle, wiggle!

Wiggle, wiggle!

And, as well as the girls having a strong emotional bond with Shocks,

the staff wanted to make sure

the riding would help them physically, too.

-Love you, Shockey.

-Love you, Shockey.

-Nice and loud. Love you, Shockey.

-Love you, Shockey.

-Oh, good girl.

'Since we've been coming,

'we've probably been coming for about a year,'

and everything's changed.

I mean, especially with Amber. Her core stability's a lot, lot better

and her strength in her arms is a lot better.

You holding it all right?

-Good girl. What's that number?

-One.

Good girl.

Right.

INAUDIBLE

-We have, so say, "Walk on."

-Walk on.

-Very good.

'The same with Hope, really. She's... Because her stability's quite good,'

she can sit up quite well anyway, but with her it's more speech.

So the riding instructors can ask her what colour she wants

and then she can tell them what colour rather than pointing.

All the activities at The Sanctuary are colour-coordinated

so the children can learn while they ride.

-What colour do you want?

-Blue.

-Blue.

-BOTH: Good girl.

-OK. So, say, "Blue," nice and loud.

-Blue.

-Blue. Well done!

-Say... Oh, my gosh!

-Good. Well done.

That was a good aim, wasn't it?

-What colour was that bucket?

-Blue.

-Nice and loud.

-Blue.

-Good girl.

And it's not just the girls who've benefited.

It's been really lovely and interesting to see how

not only has Shocks helped the girls with their additional needs,

but it's really been Amber and Hope

that have helped Shocks come out of his shell

and really made him into the brilliant therapy donkey

he is today.

Shocks has made a big impact on the girls' lives. He is so...

He's such a soft, soft donkey.

And they love him for that.

-BOTH: Good girl.

-Well done. Again.

-Love you, Shockey.

Oh, and can you give him a stroke?

In Scotland, animal welfare issues are tackled

by the Scottish Society For The Prevention Of Cruelty To Animals.

In West Dunbartonshire, near Glasgow,

senior inspector Nicki Scott is in the middle of a busy shift.

Speak. Oh, honey. Come on. Come on.

Every animal that comes into the Welfare Centre has to be

individually logged on.

Nicki is responsible for investigating

allegations of cruelty and neglect.

DOGS BARKS

We've had a complaint about the dogs.

She has the power to seize animals at risk.

Have you got room for another?

And to report people for potential prosecution.

We're meeting her tomorrow to caution and charge her.

Any animals she removes are taken back to the rescue centre

to be treated and re-homed.

It's a wee bit twisted, see?

In her 12 years with the SSPCA, Nicki has seen it all

and today is no exception.

The complainer said that it's general animal neglect.

So, they've got one collie cross, one black mongrel,

two staffie pups, seven guinea pigs and cockatiels.

In a one-bedroom flat.

Deep joy.

It's Nicki's job to decide

whether the animals are at serious risk

or whether the owners just need some help

understanding how to care for their pets.

Either way, with the amount of animals involved,

she's going to need backup.

Leads.

On inspecting the flat,

Nicki discovers that the owners are keeping 19 animals

and has decided to use her powers to seize all of them.

The smell was overpowering. It was disgusting.

There was no windows open, so there was no ventilation.

Most of the animals were locked in one room with the curtains closed.

So, if you can imagine that amount of animals all breathing

and sweating and urinating, etc.

It was a tiny one-bedroom flat.

The whole situation was just chaotic.

After speaking with the owners, they weren't coping with what they had.

Although they thought they were trying their best,

the welfare of the animals was really at risk

and they had to just all come.

SHE SINGS: I can't see where I'm going.

-Have you got any space in the side there?

-No.

-No?

-We could put them...

-Aye, we could put...

We could shove them in the side.

That's what I'm going to do with mine.

One by one, the animals are removed from the flat.

There are four dogs on the premises.

As well as ten guinea pigs, two hamsters and three finches.

OK. All right. You're all right. You're all right.

-Have you got room for another?

-If they can go in together.

With the animals filling up three vans,

they're taken back to the rescue centre.

Did you manage to get your lead off, baby? Don't you bite me.

Don't you bite me. No, no.

Last year, the Scottish SPCA found new owners for over 6,500 animals

who'd been neglected or abandoned.

Their policy is never to put a healthy animal to sleep.

-She is definitely.

-Is she?

With 19 animals living in a one-bedroom flat,

there are serious concerns as to the state of their health.

And in a matter of weeks there'll be even more animals to worry about.

I can definitely feel something in there.

Yeah. I thought so.

Well, you're definitely not going back in there with your missus.

No, you dirty boy. Dirty boy.

With at least one female guinea pig pregnant,

Nicki has to separate all the males from the females.

-I don't... No, I think it's a boy.

-It's a boy.

I think it's got little testicles in there. Yeah, it's a boy.

Ooh, there's another boy, then.

This, we have a female guinea pig with a high probability

that she is pregnant. She's got some hair loss.

The vet checked her over

and was pretty convinced that she had at least one baby in there.

This is a wee male guinea pig who was kept on his own.

He's the daddy of all the babies.

And he has...

Oh, the wee man. Oh, there.

He's got a little bit of discharge on his eye.

His eye was quite closed when we went in.

He didn't want to open that one the same as this one.

So, the vet had a wee check

and said he has got mild conjunctivitis in both his eyes.

So, he'll need treatment for that.

Again, this isn't...

He's got no quality of life in there.

He should have a hide. It's tiny. He can't run about in there.

He can't act in his normal behaviour.

It's just completely unsuitable.

This wee chap, he was in the living room.

I don't know if you can see.

He's actually got a sore eye, as well.

His right eye is really sore.

They did say they see it rubbing it's eye

quite a lot on the cuttlefish.

Again, it should have seen a vet for that

because there's obviously a problem.

The water, again, if you look, is filthy.

Just general husbandry has been really bad.

Erm, and finishing off...

..the one with the statue of poo.

Which, apparently, again got like this in a week.

And there's no way that got like that in a week.

But, as well as nursing and re-homing the smaller animals,

the charity will be looking for new owners

for the four dogs they've seized.

DOGS BARK

Spike! Oh, honey. Come on.

Come on, poor boy.

Thanks to Nicki, the animals are safe

and the couple have avoided court,

but they've been advised not to take on any more animals

unless they can provide them with proper care.

I think if they hadn't worked with me the way they did

there would have been a prosecution. They've been given a welfare notice

and they will get a written warning, as well.

I think, under the situation that we had

a prosecution probably wasn't the way to go this time,

but definitely would be the next.

We're just going to start shipping them all through to their new home

and get them settled for the night.

The story, hopefully, should have two happy endings.

One, that the couple's life should be a wee bit better and easier

and they won't lose their flat.

And two, the animals now will hopefully get good homes

where they have more space to do what they should be doing naturally

and they're not all stuck together in small cages.

-Ooh! Nice, big male.

-Oh, my goodness. He isn't half. Hello.

Aren't you, handsome?

In North Devon, one animal that's never been neglected is Teddy.

Yes. Clever boy.

He's completely transformed the life of his owner.

Life with Teddy is absolutely amazing.

It was just like somebody had waved a wand.

He was the puppy that was going to change my life.

Since birth, Wendy Hilling has suffered

from an extremely rare skin condition

which causes tears and blisters at the slightest knock.

I've got a rare genetic disease

called dystrophic epidermolysis bullosa recessive.

It's a very rare condition

and often not known by skin specialists themselves.

Known as EB for short,

Wendy's condition is life-limiting in many ways.

The pain with EB is constant.

It's always there. How you cope with it is another thing.

There are some days when the pain is so bad

that I think I can't cope with it any more.

Because the skin all over her body is so fragile,

Wendy struggles to live a normal life.

My hands are closing now

so it's limiting me a lot more than what it was.

Getting in the car, doing seat belts up -

every single thing you do, your skin's affected

because that's what you're touching.

I can't even press the button to go across the road.

You have to learn what your own limitations are.

You also have to teach other people that are dealing with you

exactly what they can do with you, as well,

which is often more difficult because it's so hard to understand

that some of the skin can look quite normal

but, in actual fact, it's just a time bomb

waiting for somebody to touch it.

Wendy's scarring is obvious on the outside of her body, on her skin,

but it also affects her internally.

Her throat has become so scarred from blisters

that the opening is now the size of a five pence piece

and it can close at any time.

You can burst the blisters in your throat.

They say, if you can get down far enough, to attempt it,

but you can't and you've just got to wait until it will subside itself.

You've really got to be brave enough to take that swallow when you don't

know whether that's going to be the very one that blocks your throat

altogether or whether that's going to be the one that bursts it.

And, because the very action of crying

makes Wendy's throat close even more,

she has to try to avoid getting emotional.

It's very difficult not to cry.

There are programmes on the television

that have to be turned off. I can't go to funerals very easily.

Even a tiny bit of emotion affects then my swallowing

for the whole rest of the day and perhaps for weeks

because it's...

It had started the swelling off and it doesn't go down voluntarily.

In earlier years, despite her challenges,

Wendy married Peter, her husband now of 22 years.

She also brought up two children

and managed to give them a relatively normal family life.

But in recent years, her condition has deteriorated so much

that Peter had no option but to give up his job

and become his wife's full-time carer.

The couple weren't able to do the normal things that the rest of us

take for granted, like getting a good night's sleep.

They had to take it in turns to stay awake each night

in case Wendy stopped breathing.

I think Peter and I were in a twilight zone permanently.

Neither of us got proper sleep. We sort of...

It worked out like a clock. We didn't set an alarm clock.

We seemed to manage to wake and sleep every two hours,

but Peter was shattered.

Not only was he looking after me 24 hours a day,

he was getting no sleep, either.

But, as time went on, Wendy realised even round-the-clock care from Peter

wasn't going to be enough.

The older I got, really, the more treatment I needed.

I think it was like the world was closing in on me.

It was almost like I was...

There was a light at the end of the tunnel for everybody else,

but for me there wasn't the light there.

I was struggling in the dark and it was getting darker and darker.

HER VOICE BREAKS Sorry.

The couple were in crisis but, just as they were about to give up hope,

Wendy spotted a woman with an unusual helper,

and it was a revelation.

She was on her own in a wheelchair

and the dog was doing everything for her.

Picking up, taking her coat off, doing everything for her.

I knew that was what I wanted.

So, I went home and I put on the internet

"dogs helping people" and it came up with various places.

And I saw Canine Partners.

And the pictures there on Canine Partners were just so adorable.

The dogs looked absolutely delightful.

And I rang up and made that phone call and it was just...

the best thing we ever did!

The charity trains dogs to assist people

with all kinds of physical disabilities.

Angel, try and get it. Yes, good girl. Bring it here.

Wendy's skin condition was a challenge,

but they were keen to help.

Dogs can not only do assistive tasks,

so picking up items, opening doors, lift buttons,

loading and unloading the washing machine,

but they'll give people the confidence to change their routine

and get back out into society.

Going out and about and meeting people

when they're out walking their dog,

as well as maybe get back into the workplace.

Tug, tug. Yes! Good girl.

They knew any dog trained for Wendy would have to be extra gentle,

so a puppy she could work with from day one would be best.

They found a litter of golden retrievers

and let Wendy choose her companion.

She was immediately drawn to one dog in particular.

He was so lively. I mean, at one stage we did begin to wonder

whether it was ever going to be a canine partner

because he was just so over-the-top.

He was just one happy bundle of fluff, you know?

Like a little snowball on legs.

They named him Teddy and he went to live with his new owners

when he was just nine weeks old.

And he's made a huge change to Wendy's life.

Having a dog gets you out. Gets you out in all weathers, as you can see.

It could be freezing cold, pouring with rain, you don't really care

once you get out with Ted. You're sitting at home and you think,

"Oh, I don't really want to go out," but once you get out with him

he's just so happy that it wears off on you.

They completed an intensive training course.

By the time Teddy was ten months old he was able to take over

a huge number of tasks that Wendy had been struggling with.

Teddy helps me get undressed, to get ready for the day.

We go shopping together. He does the cash point machine.

He pays for food at the checkout.

Even if I drop my bank card in the shop,

he's taught himself to put it against one of his claws

and flip it with the other paw. And he can even pick that up.

And our whole day is just one long adventure, really.

There's never a dull moment in my life now.

-Take it to Daddy. Say, "Rubbish, Daddy."

-Thank you, Ted.

Good boy. That's excellent. That was a good boy, wasn't it?

Get the washing for me. Open door.

Good boy. Get the washing. In there.

More washing. More. Here.

Good boy.

And the door for me then.

Well done.

Can you get my shoes for me?

Quick, in my hand. Good boy. Bring them here.

Good boy.

And it isn't just the daily tasks that Teddy helps with.

The couple now know they can rely on the dog in more ways

than they ever thought possible.

One night when Teddy was about ten months old, I came to not breathing.

Peter was asleep. Teddy was sound asleep.

And they say your life flashes before you, but it does.

Something was just... I knew it was desperate.

And, without saying anything,

Teddy just got up, ran round the other side of the bed

and pulled Peter's pillow from underneath his head

and woke him come up so Peter could help.

The bond between Teddy and my wife had got so strong

that he obviously picked up on everything that her...

her breathing did. How it altered at all.

Excellent.

At last, the couple were able to sleep soundly at night

knowing that Teddy would wake Peter if Wendy stopped breathing.

And, to make the couple feel even more secure,

they had a special alarm fitted

that Teddy could operate in a real emergency.

Teddy, go touch button. Get help. Touch button for me.

Go touch.

ALARM RINGS

And, as well as monitoring Wendy's breathing at night,

Teddy also helps Peter watch over her in the day.

Because Wendy's throat is so narrow, she can't eat solid food.

The risk of choking is just too great.

I put a bit of cheese in my mouth and I said to myself,

"You must not chew this or attempt to swallow it. Just the taste."

I just love cheese.

The next thing I know, I'm holding on to the sink

and I'm just going onto the floor and I couldn't breathe.

Teddy doesn't normally bark

unless there's something urgent and needs attention.

Wendy was choking, so I hit her on the back really hard.

And she came round.

She eventually came round, so I think he really saved her life then.

And Teddy's heroism didn't go unnoticed.

Saving a life won him a PDSA award for animal bravery,

and no-one could be more grateful than Wendy.

He calms me down. He makes me feel better. He makes me feel good.

He loves me regardless of what's wrong with me.

He doesn't understand that part of it.

He just knows he's got a mum

that loves him to the end of the earth and back.

And that's important for him and important for me.

That we have this bond, this inseparable bond.

I can't imagine what life would be like now without Teddy.

He has completely transformed our lives.

He's the best friend anyone could ever ask for.

He's the most reliable, faithful friend. Always there.

Never minds helping. We just really enjoy life.

Back in Salford, dog control officers Erica Eaton and Will Harris

are on the road again.

Yesterday, they were called out

because there was a stray roaming the streets.

DOG BARKS

Is this your dog? No.

And today they've got yet another call out.

Come here, mate. Put this on for me. Good lad.

Oh, we just got a call. We're going to go over now to the M5 area,

which I believe is maybe near Media City.

They've got a dog there confined on the premises,

so hopefully it's chipped and we can return it to its owner.

-Let's go.

-Let's go.

-Batman.

Working with Will is...funny. We have a good laugh.

I don't think there's a day goes by without us...

tittering about something or other or some dog.

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

whether it be in a school or whether it be confined to somebody's garden.

That's our priority over anything else.

So, no matter what you're doing, as soon as that call comes through,

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

The calls will mostly come from members of the public

that they've contained the dog or that they've caught the dog.

Why do we know your face?

And the member of the public who's called in this time

just happens to be presenter Nicky Campbell.

I went for a run and I went a different route this morning

and I just happened to see this dog wandering around.

And it wandered across the road and I shouted to a fella,

"Is that your dog?" He says, "No, it's not."

And it was really confused, so I...

It went down this alleyway and I came down the alleyway

and made sure it couldn't get out.

And the people in the office helped me.

I was...freezing, but...

-See? Poor thing, eh?

-Yeah.

It was breaking my heart, actually.

HE CALLS DOG WITH MOUTH

Hello. Hello. Hello.

What's the matter? Can I sit down with you?

I'll sit down. I'll sit down.

What's the matter? You lost?

As Will approaches the stray,

it's clear that the dog is confused and scared.

Good girl. Good girl. Good girl.

Good girl.

Want to smell my lead? Want to smell my lead?

Have a smell?

Want a smell, yeah?

She was breaking my heart when I saw her just wandering around

and she nearly just ran across the road.

Looks quite old, actually.

You a good girl, yes?

Good girl. You a good girl?

You a good girl? Are you a good girl? Yes?

-Yes? We'll get up slowly.

-Oh, it's a boy!

-He looks a bit disorientated.

-Yeah.

Definitely a boy.

Yeah, there we are. Good boy, aren't you?

Good boy. Good boy.

Walk with me? Yeah? A walk?

Yeah, we are all right now. Now he's on the lead.

-Well done.

-Fantastic.

-Well done.

Doesn't look like there's a tag on the collar.

You're a bit stressed, aren't you? A bit nervous.

Don't know where you are. You hungry?

Fresh out to sea.

-He just looks a bit disorientated. Aren't you, mate?

-Yes.

He looks like he's been walked

-cos his nails aren't overly long, are they?

-No. No.

He doesn't look... I think he's got out

-given the bad weather just recently.

-I would say so.

-And just doesn't know where he is.

-Yeah.

-What, just escaped?

Yeah, probably a fence panel's blown down or the gate's blown open

and the owner's not realised.

Come on, mate, shall we get you in the van? If you'll fit.

I don't want to carry you. You're too heavy.

-You want the gloves, Will?

-Yeah, just in case.

Come on, mate. Who's a good boy, eh? There's a good boy.

Just as a precaution. I want to be able to go down to the pub tonight,

so I want my drinking arm to be fine.

It's very rare. You just don't know how a dog's going to turn.

That's the problem. When under such considerable stress

and they don't know where they are,

different surroundings, different people, it's...

You know, we've got to look after ourselves. End of the day.

-Come on. You going in? Come on. Good boy.

-You see?

-See?

You don't have the lady's touch. Come on.

-That's it. You don't know.

-Come on. Good lad. Good lad.

Safe and sound. Yes?

Good luck.

-He'll be fine. We'll look after him.

-All right.

-All right, thanks very much.

-Thanks very much.

-See you.

And, as they're driving back to base, it dawns on the wardens

that the dog that was called in as a bitch looks strangely familiar.

Although he's behaving very differently today,

Tyson, the dog they met roaming the streets the day before,

is the dog they're carrying in the back of the van.

Let's make this call inside.

Will and Erica will have to call his owner in.

He wasn't too pleased to meet him last time.

In fairness, though, in the past when we've come across people

that are aggressive with you out on site,

when they've actually come into the office to claim the dog,

they're different again. So, you don't know.

We might've got him on a bad day yesterday.

You don't know what's going on behind closed doors.

I'll give him the benefit of the doubt.

Yesterday was on neutral ground. We're not on neutral ground today,

so, you know, the dog's actually in our possession at the moment.

Hopefully, he'll want to get his dog back and he'll be nice as pie to us.

I'm sure he will be. We'll soon see.

But the dog will not be removed from the van

until paperwork is filled in and payment's done

and then we'll take the dog out of the van.

Up until that point, it stays in the van.

How you doing, mate?

Thought you deserted us.

The wardens needn't have worried.

Tyson's owner is calm and willing to do whatever it takes

to get his dog back.

We'll sort this out in here.

Happy to pay the £25 fine, the owner is free to take Tyson home,

but not before the wardens have had a chance to tell him off.

Here's your receipt. All right?

First time I've ever had a receipt for a dog.

It's what? First time you got a receipt? Let it be the last.

We don't want to see him again.

He's all right, Tyson. Goes out and always comes back.

He shouldn't go out on his own.

Well, don't let Tyson go out because there's a £70 fine.

-For letting him go out on his own?

-Yes.

-I won't let him go out on his own. That's settled.

-There you go.

The best part of the job... It's the reunites.

It's fantastic handing the dog over to somebody.

It's sad sometimes because we may have a dog that we get attached to,

but obviously we have to give that dog back to them.

And it's just a wonderful moment.

It's a wonderful moment handing the dog over. Seeing people cry,

"Oh, my baby!" And the dog goes absolutely mad

because it knows it's going home. And that's the best part of the job.

Do you reckon you'll get a reaction from him when he sees you? Yeah.

-Oi.

-HE WHISTLES

Who's there?

He hasn't had a drink, has he?

We've given him treats and stuff, but he's not interested.

Nah, he won't. You all right?

Tail's going now, yeah. We're getting a reaction, yeah.

Give us your lead.

You coming out? Yeah?

Good lad. Good lad. Put this on for me.

Put this on. Come on.

I know. You can in a minute. You need this on.

You want me to do it?

There we go. There we are.

-Whoop. Careful.

-All right?

Seems to be limping on this side. There.

Yeah, don't know if he's picked something up while he's been out,

but, yeah, apart from that he's all right. Have you got him?

-Yeah. Nice one.

-All right. Take care.

-All right.

-All right. See you.

-Happy ending, yeah, that's what we want.

He's apologised for his abuse yesterday, which we can accept.

We don't mind that. It's a stressful situation.

He's got his dog back and that's exactly what we're here for,

reuniting dogs and owners.

Not the happiest of dogs but, yeah, he was lovely.

In Scotland, new homes have been found

for most of the 19 animals removed from a one-bedroom flat.

Four out of the ten guinea pigs are still at the rescue centre

and, sadly, the finch with the sore eye has died.

And in Salford,

despite hearing rumours of Tyson wandering the streets,

Will and Erica have never come across the former stray again.