A long serving member of Tasmania Police has retired from duty after 8 years of dedicated service.

9 year old Winnie, a labrador, has served as a member of the Tasmania Police dog unit as an explosive detection dog until her recent retirement.

Winnie has found a new role as the family pet of her former police handler, Constable David Roberts.  It’s convention in police jurisdictions to allow the former dog handler the first option to keep a retired dog, as it recognises the bond between the dog and the handler and provides a smooth transition into retirement.

Constable Roberts is also the new handler for Winnie’s replacement in the dog unit, 19 month old labrador Cassie.  She joins Tasmania Police from the dog unit at the South Australia Police Service where she underwent initial training.

Cassie has a statewide responsibility for detection duties.  She will be based on the North West Coast and a large part of her duties involve routine checks of vehicles on the Spirit of Tasmania and at airports.

Cassie has now completed her training with Constable Roberts and is ready for active duty.