MEET

MWD Paul

Breed of dogSpringer Spaniel

Location of servitudeRAF Police

Type of serviceSearch & Detection

ConditionCruciate injury

  • Retired military working dog Paul at hydrotherapy
  • Retired military working dog Paul snoozes on the sofa
  • Retired military working dog Paul out on a walk with one of the kids

FIND OUT MORE ABOUT RETIRED MILITARY WORKING DOG PAUL

MWD Paul licensed in 2022 and worked as an arms and explosives search dog with the Royal Air Force Police, based at RAF Northolt.

The five-year-old was named as the Thin Blue Paw’s Military Working Dog of the Year, in 2025, before he sadly had to retire after suffering a serious injury to his cruciate ligament.

During his short but successful career, Paul had six operational finds meaning he helped to potentially avert six life-threatening incidents.

Bred in Holland, Paul was initially stationed in Oxfordshire at RAF Brize Norton before moving to the RAF Police MWD Specialist Flight on the Operational Capability Unit at RAF Northolt in London.

Retired military working dog Paul sits on a tree stump
Military Working Dog Paul with handler Craig Roberts

His handler Sgt Craig Roberts adopted him when he retired and the spaniel now lives with his family and two pet dogs where he loves snoozing and Sunday trips to the pub!

Paul was officially retired in December 2025 and now enjoys going to work with Craig – who is no longer a handler and now works in military dog training – at the Defence Animal Training Regiment.

Craig said: “Paul has gone full circle and back to where he started his training, though he now gets to sleep a lot in my office and gets lots of attention from anyone who comes in.

“He has continued hydrotherapy, which he loves, and also enjoys that he gets his toy whenever he wants now, and doesn’t have to work for it!

“He has settled into retirement with ease and loves spending time with our family and is loving life as a pet.” 

Retired military working dog Paul in the long grass

“At the awards I learned how the charity supported retired police dogs and that really gave me confidence and peace of mind for Paul’s future care, especially with the serious injury that he retired with and the potential for further similar injuries.“

Craig, Paul’s former handler and owner

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