Saved from house of horrors, Bruce, Pablo, Lola, and Nellie had a tough start
Nellie just after she was rescued
Bruce, Pablo, Lola, and Nellie had a tough start.
They were among nearly 80 springer spaniels found living in squalor earlier this year in a house of horrors.
Rescued by the RSPCA, all four have now been given a new lease of life – fighting crime on the streets of Manchester.
The quartet are Greater Manchester Police‘s newest recruits, and will now go through specialist training to become sniffer dogs.
They were among 78 dogs found living in a filthy house in Doncaster in April. One rescue boss described it as “one of the worst cases of cruelty” they had seen.
The spaniels, four other breeds, two cats and a chicken, were taken to safety after being rescued from a detached house in the countryside.
Officers were aghast by the smell of ‘faeces and filthy’, conditions and the volume of animals living inside finding dogs around every corner. The dogs were terrified of their rescuers, hiding under furniture.
But after careful assessment, five of the 78 were selected by GMP for their strong personalities and potential to become sniffer dogs. Sadly one did not meet the grade but was speedily rehomed in Wales.
Bruce, one of GMP’s new recruits.
PC Wes Donnelly, of the force’s Tactical Dog Unit, said: “These dogs have gone from being neglected to having a real purpose. Providing their training goes well they’ll soon be helping us detect drugs, cash and other items that support investigations”.
The four join the force as its Tactical Dog Unit is making more arrests than ever before, thanks to it being expanded and the introduction of new specialist capabilities, including a digital detection dog (digi-dog).
The unit, which now operates 24/7 across Greater Manchester following the addition of 11 new dog handlers. Between May and July 2025, the unit made 170 arrests and conducted 177 stop searches, with a significant number linked to neighbourhood crimes such as burglary, robbery and theft.
Pablo – one of the four Springer Spaniels rescued from a house of horrors in Doncaster and now working for GMP.
Comparing this year to 2023 – arrests have increased by 266 percent in May, 81 percent in June and 62 percent in July. Stop searches have also risen significantly, with a 163 percent increase in May alone.
Recent highlights include: 28 burglary arrests; 10 violent robbery arrests; 23 arrests for offensive weapons; and 29 theft-related arrests. A recent success was finding a firearm hidden in a bush in Oldham.
Chief Inspector Chris Clarke of GMP’s Specialist Operations Unit, said: “Our dogs play a vital role in bringing offenders to justice, from our highly trained sniffer dogs that can detect even the most concealed items, to our formidable general purpose dogs who are instrumental in apprehending suspects attempting to flee.
Some of the 78 Springer Spaniels as they were found in April in filthy conditions in a detached house.
“This is an exciting and pivotal time for the dog unit. We’re delivering more justice than ever and continuing to support the force in keeping the people of Greater Manchester safe and secure”.
One standout addition to the team is Barney, a one-year-old Springer Spaniel who has become GMP’s first-ever digital detection dog. Trained to sniff out hidden electronic devices such as SD cards, SIM cards, mobile phones and hard drives. He plays a vital role in high-risk investigations, including counter-terrorism and safeguarding operations.
Barney has supported officers to detect devices that are hidden by sex offenders, drugs dealers and thieves that steal digital devices.
Sniffer dog Barney with his handler, PC Ben Lomax.
His handler, PC Ben Lomax, said: “On every job we’ve been on together, Barney has found something. He’s able to detect devices that even the most experienced officers might miss, including five digital items hidden during a recent operation we were on”.