A police dog has carried out a heroic duty by helping keep a vulnerable person safe after ‘tracking him’ through a field.

Rex the police dog was on duty with PC Ross Ashcroft in Waltham Abbey on Sunday, August 11 when they received reports of a missing person.

The young man had left his home in a distressed state and headed towards a busy road near farmers’ fields.

At first, an officer searched the area for the man and found him but where he tried to speak to him but he ran away through fields.

The officer pointed PC Ashcroft in the correct direction where the officer then instructed Rex to use his specialist tracking skills to find the young man.

After tracking for approximately 500 metres, policeman and canine found the man and kept him safe until the he was later returned home and family safely.

A statement issued by Essex Police said: “PC Ross Ashcroft and PD Rex have been serving the county together since April 2019, when they “completed their training course.

This is just one example of Rex putting his specialist skills to good use.

PD Rex is a Dutch Herder, the first of his breed to be serving the county of Essex as a Police Dog.

“He is two and a half years old and Ross is looking forward to continuing to build on their success. “

Essex Police have a dedicated team of officers, who work closely with mental health nurses, to help keep victims safe, find out more:

www.twitter.com/EPStreetTriage

Interested in becoming a police officer? Start your application today:

www.essex.police.uk/fitthebill