WHEN Chester the foxhound arrived at Teckels Animal Shelter, he joined the ranks of the county's many unwanted pets.

But now he could be given a new home and a career to boot – as a police sniffer dog.

The homeless hound came to Teckels in Whitminster three weeks ago but will be given a trial with a force.

Joan Barrett, manager at Teckels, said she was delighted the future looked so rosy for the affectionate dog.

She said: "We have a police dog that stays here regularly to board with us and I showed the officer Chester, told him he had a good nose and asked if the police might take him.

"He must have called another force up north and then they called and said they were interested in giving him a go. I don't want to name the force in case I jinx him. But they said they will give him a shot, which is just fantastic."

Friendly

Joan thinks that Chester, who is 18 months old, is made of the right stuff to be in the police.

She said: "When you take Chester for a walk he always has his nose to the ground and is sniffing everything. He is very passive and friendly and is into everything. The other day he went on a 20-mile walk and was still raring to go.

"He loves walks and he is just a lovely dog. I think he would do a great job as a police dog."

Chester came into the shelter from a rescue centre in Cumbria and is now looking to go back up north to join the police.

Joan said it was very rare to have a dog like Chester at the shelter.

She said: "I have never had a foxhound in the rescue centre before, they don't really come up.

"He came to us via the Trailhound Trust. He had been at a pound in Cumbria. The first time he escaped his owner went to collect him but then the second time the pound sent the owners a letter and they just didn't want to do anything.

"They would have got rid of him but the Trailhound Trust stepped in and rescued him and then he came to us from them.

"He is a lovely dog. We even had the Berkeley Hunt come to look at him but he has never been hunting before and that sort of thing is not really in him."

Police dogs, also known as K9 dogs, are specifically trained to help the police and other law-enforcement personnel in their work.

Common breeds are German shepherds, spaniels and beagles and they can be used to sniff out drugs, missing people and objects.

If he doesn't make it in the police Joan said Chester would still make a great pet.

She added: "He is hopefully going for his trial at the end of the week and then who knows? Hopefully he will get in. But if he doesn't make it as a sniffer dog then he would make a great pet.

"He is very friendly and just has a lovely temperament."

To inquire about dogs at the shelter, call Teckels on 01452 740300.