Suffolk Police has the top dog in the eastern region
Monday, 21 March, 2011
A Suffolk Police dog handler has come first in this year's Eastern Region Police Dog Trials.
PC Nick Self and his German Shepherd Lincoln, came first in the three day competition held in Suffolk last week from 15th - 17th March, resulting in Suffolk winning the Eastern Region Trials for the eighth year in a row.
This means that Suffolk has qualified to compete at the National Police Dog Trials, which this year will be held in Suffolk at Trinity Park, Ipswich from the 15th - 17th April.
Suffolk were also awarded fourth place, thanks to an excellent performance by PC Tony Russell and his dog, Yogi. Tony and Yogi now wait to hear if they will also qualify to the National Level as high-scoring runners-up.
Nick has an excellent track record of competing at regional and national level, having qualified to compete at national trials seven times in the past nine years, and having won the regional trials six times. Nick was also crowned national champion with police dog Taz at the National Trials in 2004.
This year's trials were hosted by Suffolk Constabulary and involved 9 handlers and dogs from police forces in Suffolk, Norfolk, Essex, Cambridgeshire and Bedfordshire/Hertfordshire. The trials are held annually to test the partnership between the handler and the dog, who together act as a key element of the police service.
Competitors are awarded points in various tests and the winning pair has a chance of qualifying for the National Police Dog trials if they score a minimum of 700 points out of a possible 1000.
Nick and Lincoln, who are based in Bury St Edmunds, scored an impressive 827 points and will therefore represent Suffolk and the Eastern Region in front of a home crowd, next month. This will be the first time that Suffolk has hosted the National Trials, and the first time in 51 years that it has been hosted in the Eastern region.
PC Russell and Yogi, who were regional champions last year, were not far behind, scoring 741 points and finishing only 6 points behind the third place competitor.
The three-day event is organised in separate phases, testing the different skills that are crucial to the partnership between the handler
and the dog. Phase one involved a test of the dogs' tracking skills
as they tracked a pre-laid course in the open countryside. This was followed by a 'use of force' exercise involving the pursuit and challenge of a suspect. The day culminated in a property search in which four articles had to be located.
Phase two involved a search exercise, whereby the dog and handler had to search for two persons hiding in a building, with the handler being attacked with a weapon.
Phase three, held at Police Headquarters in Martlesham Heath, tested agility, obedience, crowd control, and 'chase and pursuit'.
Nick says "I am absolutely delighted to have won the trials with Lincoln and to have qualified for the nationals. Competing at the national level in front of a Suffolk crowd will be a real honour, and I hope that lots of people will come along to support the event and to see what we do with our dogs on a daily basis to help protect our communities.
"I have been Lincoln's handler since he was a year old. He is now nearly five, so we have had a fantastic four years of working hard together. It is excellent to have achieved this recognition for the skills we have developed."
Dog Section Sergeant Mick Hart said: "I am extremely pleased with the performance of both teams at this year's trials. Their high scores are a reflection of the level of skill they have developed, and a demonstration of the way in which they work together, every day, to help us tackle crime.
"We are proud to be hosting the National Trials next month and look forward to supporting Nick and Lincoln as they compete against the top police dogs from forces across the country."
