POLICE dogs and their handlers are a ‘vital’ resource to the force, a senior manager from Cheshire Constabulary said as she joined the canine unit on patrol in Winsford.

On Friday, June 12, Supt Beverley Raistrick joined more than 40 bosses from the force go back to the front line for one day.

Police chiefs say the initiative is to help managers experience first-hand the roles and pressures staff face on a daily basis and to remind them what the public want from policing.

Supt Raistrick joined one of the force’s dog handlers, PC Greg Cross, and his trustee companion, Rocco, to get a sniff of what a day in the life of a dog handler is like.

“These dogs are vital,” Supt Raistrick said. “If we didn’t have the dog handlers then our staffing models would have to be different.

“Our officers and their dogs, when they’re searching for something or someone, what they can cover in half an hour would take a team of officers hours so it’s a really, really cost effective resource.”

PC Cross said his role was not simply a job, but a ‘way of life’.

His four-year-old companion lives with him and his family, and their bond is unshakeable.

The Belgian Shepard is also a firearm support dog. Rocco is classed as a ‘less than lethal force option’, and may be called upon to tackle potentially lethal situations by using none-lethal force.

He said: “I go to a lot of incidents, a variety of incidents. I’ve come across people that you wouldn’t have necessarily found without the dog.

“I’m the eyes and ears on the ground with the dog. If its pitch black, you’re not going to be able to find that person without using the dog.

“Time and time again we find people, whether it be a missing person or an offender that’s ran off from the scene of the crime. They're invaluable.”