The RSPCA rescued a dog and now a thriving police sniffer after they caught on CCTV footage that his
owner was abusing him. The spaniel, Marshall, was spotted trembling in fear while a teenager kicked,
hit, picked him up by his neck, and threw him onto a sofa at a living home in Devon.
The RSPCA asked for help from Devon and Cornwall Police to get the dog and take him into their care.
They found Marshall was still legally owned and microchipped by his previous owner and that the
teenager had him on a trial basis. Marshall’s previous owner agreed to sign him over to the RSPCA for
rehoming.
Beccy Wadey, an RSPCA Inspector who investigated the case, said Marshall was fostered by an
experienced handler at Gloucestershire Police last November and is now a cash, drugs, and firearms
detection dog. Dog trainer PC Rich Hunt said: “Marshall is brilliant, a typical crazy little spaniel. He
doesn’t stop and goes at 100mph in everything he does.”
The teenager from Torquay, unnamed due to his age during the offense, was sentenced at Newton
Abbot Magistrates Court on Monday. He has been sentenced to a one-year community order with 100
hours of unpaid work, ordered to pay £495, and banned from keeping any animals for ten years.
