Volunteers and animal lovers are needed to help support a police welfare scheme.

The Police Dog Welfare Scheme is on the hunt for volunteers to perform checks on the dogs that work with police in Hertfordshire, Bedfordshire and Cambridgeshire.

Volunteers inspect the dogs during training sessions and at specific locations, examining the animals' condition and their movements to check that the dogs are not carrying any injuries or have been mistreated.

The police vehicles in which the dogs are transported around in are also checked for their suitability and handlers are also questioned regarding the dogs’ health and wellbeing.

John Sterling, a retired company executive from Aldenham, is one of the volunteers currently working in the scheme and says that being a police dog welfare volunteer is a great way to give something back to the community.

He said: “My wife and I have owned Alsatians for many years. I wanted to put something back into the community. I’ve tried other ways of doing that but this is the way I like the most. I like to be active and this provides that.”

Ideally the scheme needs six volunteers to run effectively, although currently there are only two with two more having just been recruited.

Mr Sterling added: “Just being a ‘doggy person’ doesn’t necessarily make you right for a role like this. There is a vetting and interview process to make sure that volunteers are suitable and then once accepted, training is provided for them when they start.”

“While the volunteers are not the only safeguard against the abuse of police dogs, it is still an important role because it provides independent scrutiny for the dog unit so we know that they are being treated appropriately.”

Anyone interested in volunteering can visit www.herts.police.uk/volunteers for more information and ideas.