The National Foundation for Retired Service Animals (NFRSA) has jointly announced a new partnership with the RAF, pledging lifelong care and financial support for retired RAF Police dogs.
Effective immediately, the NFRSA will adopt and support these exceptional animals in their post-service years, ensuring they receive the medical, welfare, and emotional care they deserve after a lifetime of service.
The announcement was made jointly by Provost Marshal (RAF) Group Captain Samantha Bunn and The Countess Bathurst, Founder and Chair of the NFRSA, before assembled guests, handlers, and dignitaries at RAF Honington, on the final day of the RAF Police MWD Trials. Both paid tribute to the extraordinary contribution RAF Police dogs make to national security and to the duty owed to them once their working lives conclude.
RAF Police Dogs are seen as the ‘Guardians of the Skies’. They fulfil a diverse range of roles of security and force-protection essential to the protection of RAF stations and personnel worldwide, including:
Patrol Dogs
The core of the RAF Police MWD capability, deterring, detecting, and detaining those who threaten personnel, assets, or infrastructure. Unlike static systems, they provide a dynamic, unpredictable deterrent through covert and overt patrols, preventing intrusions before they occur. Their speed, agility, and relentless pursuit are well-known factors that deter unauthorised access.
RAF Police Dogs
Provide the same specialist skills as Home Office Police General Purpose dogs, tracking assailants, locating evidence, and supporting Law Enforcement and Force Protection teams. They offer scalable use-of-force options and serve as an effective, less-than-lethal deterrent, delivering a clear tactical advantage in high-risk situations.
Vehicle Search Dogs
Are vital for inspecting vehicles entering MOD sites and can also search aircraft and ships, which greatly enhance detection and preventing prohibited items from entering Defence facilities.
Drugs Detection Dogs
Are a vital part of the RAF’s proactive approach to maintaining discipline and preventing drug misuse. They support RAF Police Law Enforcement in safeguarding operational effectiveness and personnel wellbeing. Beyond RAF stations, these specialist dogs also assist the Defence Serious Crime Unit, helping deter and detect criminal activity across the wider Defence community.
Arms and Explosives Search Dogs
Are elite RAF Police assets trained to detect hidden firearms, ammunition, and explosives in any environment. Operating worldwide, RAF Police AES teams deny hostile forces access to lethal aid while protecting personnel, infrastructure, and critical missions. Their role is vital to force protection and counterterrorism, reducing threats and ensuring uninterrupted operations.
All RAF Police dogs are trained at the Defence Animal Training Regiment (DATR) in Melton Mowbray, where handlers complete intensive police and specialist dog-handling training before deployment.
Through the new partnership, the NFRSA will offer financial support in the form of grants to help cover medical and veterinary costs for newly retired RAF Police dogs going forward, supporting treatments, diagnostics, and age-related care.
Once a dog retires, the institutional infrastructure of kennels, equipment and veterinary provision ceases, often leaving handlers or adopters to bear full responsibility for ongoing care. The NFRSA exists to alleviate that burden — ensuring these loyal animals enjoy the dignity, comfort, and security they have earned.
Said Group Captain Samantha Bunn, Provost Marshal (RAF): “Our Military Working Dogs are frontline defenders, trusted by handlers and essential to the security of RAF operations. It is wholly right and fitting that, when their service ends, we ensure they are not forgotten. The partnership with NFRSA means these brave animals will receive the care and honour they’ve earned, long after their working days conclude.”
The Countess Bathurst, founder and chair of NFRSA said;
“When I founded the NFRSA, it was with the full intention to embrace more services as we grew, and we were deeply honoured to be approached by the RAF team to ask us to consider welcoming the RAF Police Military Working Dogs into our family. It is with enormous pride we make this joint announcement today. These exceptional animals have served their country with unwavering loyalty. In return, they deserve our commitment and our support at every stage, especially when illness or age slow them down. Our new partnership with the RAF is not just symbolic of the way we have developed as a charity; it is a practical promise of guardianship and respect to all our service animals in whatever role they have fulfilled.”
To support or find out more about the NFRSA please go to NFRSA.