'Wellbeing dogs' help Sussex Police to keep calm - along with their prisoners

The ‘police wellbeing dogs’ have been trained to support officers and staff who are often exposed to trauma – and to calm people who are agitated while in police custody.

But that’s not all. They also attend court to lend a helping paw to victims and witnesses.

One such ‘wellbeing dog’ is Maui who is normally found visiting police stations across Sussex giving officers a bit of light relief from their demanding day-to-day duties.

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But lovable Maui went above and beyond when he recently attended court to support a young victim at a hearing.

The gentle 20-month old American Akita sat in the court’s video link room with the victim and helped to make them feel able to give their best evidence under challenging circumstances.