Badger is a cocker spaniel who was found in a bucket, doped in the front yard of a house when he was just a puppy. The little black boy was found with three other puppies in Redhill, Surrey, UK in July 2019, when he was only around six weeks old. Now Badger has a great future as a police sniffer dog.

Badger and the other puppies were hairless due to mange, had eye and ear infections, and were severely malnourished. The puppies were cared for by the RSPCA, who raised them and later moved them into their homes.

After receiving treatment, the puppies named Dustin (now Badyer), El, Lucas and Mike; honoring the Stranger Things characters, and were relocated to loving families.

Doped puppy is now a police sniffer dog

But the adorable Badger was apparently quite energetic and was unable to mate with his new family, so he was returned to the RSPCA. There they considered that he could have a great future with the police.

Jo Douglas, who was with Badger at the RSPCA, told the Daily Mail:

“It has been incredible to see the transformation of a poor, injured puppy into a brave and intelligent crime-fighting hero.”

Jo, based at the RSPCA’s Millbrook Animal Center in Cobham, discovered that despite Badger’s initial restlessness, he excelled at sniffing out and locating objects. This discovery inspired Jo to propose to the police that Badger might be an excellent addition to their team.

The woman added:

“I was always on the go and needed constant stimulation; he was too adoptive with him, so he came back to us. “We kept him busy by hiding tennis balls in the center and playing scent games with him.”

Now Badger has become a “defender of justice” after his difficult start. The police trained him as a sniffer dog.

PC Steph Barrett, who works alongside Badger at the Surrey and Sussex Police Dog Unit, says:

“After much love and training, he has regained trust in humans. He still has that cheeky side, but he’s obsessed with work. “It makes me smile all day.”

Jo was invited by Surrey and Sussex Police to see Badger in action.

She added:

“I was lucky enough to go see him when he was training and it was incredible to see him work. That day, he even found ɡᴜп, аmmᴜпіtіoп, moпeу and drugs; He is such a smart boy! When he graduated the police sent us a copy of his certificate and an official photo of him which we now have in a place of honor at Millbrook. We are very proud of him.”

Badger, now 20 months old, graduated as a sniffer dog just over six months ago and spends his days fighting crime.

Badger is already a star at his job, with major arrests including the discovery of a stash of cash, drugs and a mobile phone he found hidden in the grounds of a church in Belgrave Road, Seaford.

The RSPCA has seen some unwanted and adopted dogs excel as successful police and sniffer dogs after completing their training.