Officers from the Met Police’s south-west team have found an innovative way to release stress.
The OCSAE (Online Sexual Abuse and Exploitation) unit are receiving visits from Police Dog Dexter, the Met’s first welfare dog.
Dexter first came to the offices on Tuesday (Feb 9).
The OCSAE team view evidential images related to child exploitation, including indecent images of children.
Crimes investigated fall across the boroughs of Wandsworth, Merton, Kingston and Richmond.
Due to the extreme nature of the material they see, viewing thousands of images every week, the job can take a toll.
Dexter provided some much-needed rest and affection for those carrying out difficult jobs.
Although the officers receive support from occupational health and get support from their colleagues, the furry recruit provided a different morale boost.
Dexter was with the team for a couple of hours, and Dog handler Mike gave a talk about the importance of mental health.
Detective Sergeant Suzanne Quinton said:
“It definitely gave the team a boost and a sense of well-being, of benefit to our role but also a general boost during COVID lockdown.”
Dexter is a pedigree black Labrador, bred by the Met Police at Keston.
He was earmarked for training as a passive scan drugs dog.
However, he was withdrawn from his training in week four for being too sociable, wanting to interact with the force rather than do detection work.
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules here