Retired police dog now helping save other canines

Izzy the dog is helping train owners on how to do pet first aid

A former police dog who once searched for explosives is now helping save the lives of other dogs.

Izzy, a seven-year-old springer spaniel, retired from the Norfolk and Suffolk Police Joint Dog Section last year.

She was adopted by Paul Watts from Lowestoft, Suffolk, and now helps him provide healthcare training, including first aid for dogs.

Mr Watts said it was wonderful to see his dog "living a new life".

Izzy lives with Paul Watts and his two other spaniels, who all help to demonstrate first aid to other owners

Izzy worked for more than five years in the police at sites including the Sandringham Estate, music festivals and during royal visits across the region.

Mr Watts adopted her after a friend within the police dog unit told him she was looking for a home.

He uses Izzy and his other dogs to help demonstrate pet first aid to other owners, giving them have real-life practice during sessions.

Paul Watts displays Izzy's Kennel Club Good Citizens Bronze Award certificate - a scheme which teaches owners to train their dogs for everyday life situations

"It feels like Izzy has gone full-circle in her life. She was trained to save lives as an explosive search dog, and now she's got another chance to save lives by helping me train dog owners in vital canine first aid," Mr Watts said.

"Izzy is such a friendly, laid-back dog who adores any sort of attention, so she loves to lay there and get petted while being bandaged up."

Izzy has been supported by the Thin Blue Paw Foundation, a charity which supports serving and retired police dogs.

The charity had helped partly fund medical treatment for her when she recently suffered a broken tooth and tooth abscess, which Mr Watts said was a "huge help".

Thin Blue Paw chairman, Kieran Stanbridge, said it was "an honour to support dogs like Izzy".

He added: "She spent many years serving her country as a police dog, and it's such an inspiration to see that she's now helping dogs and their owners too."