Dog Section

The Dog Section is based at Baluniefield Police Station in the Douglas area of Dundee but has responsibility for providing police dogs throughout the whole force area.

The section comprises 1 dog instructor and 8 dog handlers, one of whom is also an instructor. Each of the dog handlers has a general purpose police dog and a specialist search dog.

Dog handlers are operational police officers and as such they carry out intelligence led high profile patrols in order to deter and catch criminals and to reassure the public. The dog handlers are a force resource and can be tasked to a specific area or police operation where their specialist knowledge can be of assistance.

Tayside Police's dog handlers and instructors need to be instinctively aware of a dog's potential for police work by gauging its intelligence levels and general temperament from an early stage. Officers involved in this process must show an affinity with and a dedication to the animals they work with, making the relationship between dog and handler one of mutual trust and absolute loyalty.

Officers must complete two years probation as well as two years core policing work before being considered for a post in the dog section. They then have to submit an application and only those of a particular disposition and aptitude will be considered.