Police dog and handler win national crimefighting award

A retired police dog who started life as a stray has won a national crimefighting award along with his handler.

PC Daniel Carter and PD Boss have been crowned the winners of the ‘Crimefighting Duo Award’ from the Thin Blue Paw Foundation after they were nominated by PC Carter’s family.

The award was collected during a ceremony held at The Royal Kennel Club in Mayfair, London, on Tuesday 29 September 2026.

The 4 year old German Shepherd joined the force after he was found underweight and unkempt wandering the streets alone in Norfolk in 2023.

PC Carter said: ‘After he was found, nobody came forward to claim him and due to his high drive and personality, he was put forward as a potential police dog. ‘He was earmarked to be the spare dog for my initial course, but he immediately showed how good he was and I ended up swapping dogs at week 7. It was the best decision I ever made!’

Sadly, PD Boss was medically retired in June of this year due to degenerative arthritis, but in such a short space of time he demonstrated his ability to be a well natured, loyal family dog who could quickly switch into a reliable, hardworking police dog.

His courage and determination saw him assist in over 100 arrests and successfully track and apprehend numerous suspects. He also became accredited as a Firearms Support Dog after he passed an intensive 3 week course designed to test a dog’s control and search ability.

PC Carter said: ‘The adrenaline you feel when you're running through the darkness at 2am, trusting your dog is taking you the right way and then suddenly finding someone hiding – there is simply no better feeling. One of the best things about being a police dog handler is having your best mate by your side day in day out and trusting each other, keeping each other safe and having a bond that nobody can break. ‘He loved all aspects of the police work and he showed time and time again his ability to find and detain suspects, search for property and assist in locating vulnerable people.’

In one such incident PD Boss tracked across various terrains before he successfully found a suicidal man at the top of a steep ravine.

Since PD Boss was medically retired, PC Carter has been assigned another dog and is getting to grips with training the new recruit.

PD Boss has landed on his paws once again as he now has a new home in the Welsh countryside with PC Carter’s parents.