Fern is a five year old female Springer/Cocker Spaniel cross who lives with her owner Neil Powell in Newcastle, County Down.
Fern is the only dog in the UK and Ireland, trained to the National Search and Rescue Dog Association standards, for locating bodies under water. Fern is a Drowned Victim Search Dog (or DVSD) and since qualifying she has successfully located one drowned victim in the Republic Ireland, and therefore helped bring closure to the grieving family, and helped pinpoint the position of two further bodies in Northern Ireland.

Barney is an eight year old male Collie cross who wears his Fire Investigation Dog boots with pride.
Since September 2006, Barney has worked alongside his owner and trainer Kerry Burns with the Buckinghamshire Fire & Rescue Service where he investigates the causes of fires. Since qualifying, Barney has attended a staggering 226 fire scenes as well as numerous community safety events to promote arson reduction across the Buckinghamshire and Milton Keynes area. Last year alone, Barney’s intervention led to a decrease of nearly 20% in arson related fires across the area.

Pride is a three year old male German Shepherd Police Dog who lives and works with his handler PC Adrian Sheargold in Wolverhampton, West Midlands.
In March 2009, an 18 year old girl was reported missing from her home which was completely out of character. PC Sheargold and Police Dog Pride were called to the scene to help search the premises of a huge disused music factory in Wolverhampton. Police Dog Pride eventually helped locate a hidden compartment in a cellar in which the victim had been kept prisoner for 48 hours. The girl had been left without food and water and was handcuffed and gagged throughout the ordeal. Further investigation revealed a ransom note and a coffin on the premises.
Police Inspectors at the scene were convinced that had it not been for Police Dog Pride’s intervention, diligence and team work the girl would not have been found alive.

Darcy is a five year old Border Collie who is owned by John Ball from Bentley, Suffolk. John, who works for the Essex County Fire & Rescue Service, is also a member of the International Search & Rescue Team (ISART). In October 2009, Darcy along with her handler John Ball flew half way around the world to help search for survivors of the Sumatran earthquake. After travelling for over 16 hours, Darcy then had a rough road journey to a remote village and mudslide area - she worked tirelessly round the clock in extreme heat and 90% humidity. Although no live casualties were found Darcy gave comfort to the victims’ families and fellow rescue team workers. Since then Darcy has been in quarantine but was finally released in April 2010.

Claire's daughter Jasmine was just two when she was diagnosed with kidney disease, and by the time she was five she had no kidney function at all. She has dialysis every night and is also tube fed during the night. She is awaiting a kidney transplant. Claire got Treacle from Dogs Trust Kenilworth when Jasmine was two as a friend and companion for her.

Treacle sleeps on Jasmine’s bed or next to her and is a huge comfort. Jasmine often has to go into hospital for treatment and Treacle cannot join her which is very upsetting. The family have therefore applied for Treacle to be a PAT dog so that Jasmine can see her whenever she needs hospitalisation.

In Late 2007 David Mercer was diagnosed with cancer and in the same year his wife sadly and unexpectedly walked out on him and his two dogs, Bonnie and Dillon. The shock, sadness and stress of the year became too much for David who tried to take his own life, thankfully he was unsuccessful and was admitted to a mental health hospital with acute depression. Unfortunately Dillon died whilst David was in care, but Doctors reminded him that Bonnie still needed him – with this in mind, David began to look forward to returning home for Bonnie.

Bonnie has since helped David to settle into life once again; he now goes for fresh air and a walk every morning with her, visitors come by to see Bonnie during the day and evenings are spent with her curled up by his side. It is this simple way of life with a set routine that has aided David’s recovery, and Bonnie is at the very heart of this new way of life.

Beverley has ongoing medical complications and is a sufferer of depression; when Millie came into her world as a twelve week old puppy she changed her life. Beverley truly believes that without Millie, she would still be suffering in silence, lying in bed alone for days at a time in the depth of depression. Millie has given Beverley a reason to get up and out of the house in the morning, she now has the confidence to go out and chat to people and subsequently met her fiancé, Darren, and in 2009 they had a child, James.

Millie is also devoted to Beverley's baby son who suffers from a disorder that means he sporadically stops breathing. Millie alerted Beverley one evening by barking at James' cot – the baby had stopped breathing and Millie saved his life by crying for help.

Tim is a 15 year old crossbreed who belongs to the owners of an EMI residential home in North Yorkshire. They rehomed him from Dogs Trust Leeds when their previous dog sadly died. The residents of the home have Alzheimer's or Dementia but many still remember their own dogs from when they were younger. They never remember Tim's name but they can call him anything and he will obediently come to them. Tim goes and lays in rooms where people are unwell; the residents and their families are very fond of him and he provides lots of comfort.

Eight year old Border Collie cross Brock was one of the first assessed Lowland Search Dogs and is the now the longest serving operational LSD. Brock is a wonderful gent and truly a life saver.

Brock is specially trained to follow the trail of a specific scent so he can trace a person's 'smell' from where they went missing and lead us to where they have gone. He had the first ever find for a Lowland Search Dog when he found the body of Government weapons expert Dr David Kelly. Since then Brock has been on numerous searches often for children and elderly people with Alzheimer's or Dementia.

Many people think search dogs only operate in the mountains but LSDs like Brock, who carries out his duties with such devotion, are actually more likely find the public’s lost loved ones.

Cassie, an eight year old German Shepherd is a rather unique dog who has raised £32,000 for charity through her 'Pay for a Pat' box - when she allows members of the public to pat and stroke her in return for a donation. It's estimated that she has received in excess of 100,000 pats and strokes as no-one does this just once!

Her owner Jillie Wheeler became profoundly deaf after her husband passed away and it was Cassie who became her 'rock' and motivated her to start fundraising. Cassie is also a registered Pets as Therapy dog and visits a local nursing home to comfort elderly residents. She is extremely popular and instinctively knows what is expected of her. Cassie and Jillie make an excellent team, her devotion to Jillie and willingness to help are a real inspiration

Robert, owner of 10 year old Akita Adora saw an advert in a local paper asking for dogs to audition to play the role of Sandy in "Annie" in the West End. He thought Adora should give it a go because she fitted the requirement of being a sandy colour – she got the part! Adora really is a star in the making - she has a talent agent and is just waiting for her big break. She also goes into schools with the Blue Cross youth education scheme teaching children how to behave safely and responsibly around dogs.

Puzzle is a 2 year old Tibetan Terrier, very hairy and cute! Puzzle and his owner Rachael compete in Dog Agility and have won Top Elementary Dog and Handler in Scotland and also Top Junior Handler and Dog in Scotland. They started competing in February 2009 and by October 2009 had progressed from Grade 1 to Grade 6.

One year old Australian Terrier Pangyau is a comical little fellow, who one day started walking around on his hind legs. Janie, his owner, has students lodging with her, one of whom called her over to say that Pangyau was walking on his back legs, without any encouragement. He just wanders around like this and also likes to leapfrog other dogs!