RPD Miki (pictured above right with owner Ashley and one of other dogs) and RPD Kenai (pictured below) both served with North Yorkshire Police and retired within months of each other. Now a charity is racing to raise £5,000 so both dogs can have the surgery they desperately need.

Two police dogs who served with North Yorkshire Police at the same time and retired within months of each other are both in urgent need of major surgery.

The Thin Blue Paw Foundation, a charity that supports, rehabilitates and advocates for working and retired police dogs across the UK, has launched a fundraising appeal to raise £5,000 to cover the cost of both procedures, expected to exceed £2,500 each.

Six-year-old German Shepherd Miki served as a general purpose police dog from March 2021 until October 2025, when he was forced into early retirement after being diagnosed with spondylosis, hip dysplasia and a ruptured cruciate ligament. Now, his other cruciate ligament has ruptured and he needs Tibial Plateau Levelling Osteotomy (TPLO) surgery again.

Seven-year-old German Shepherd Kenai (pictured above) worked as a general purpose and firearms support dog for six years before retiring at the end of last year. He was settling into retired life well when, on Saturday evening (9 May), he broke his leg in an accident while playing fetch.

His owner, Ashley, said: “We were playing fetch and as he caught the ball and turned he suddenly yelped. We rushed him to the emergency vets who carried out x-rays and discovered he’d fractured his elbow.”

Both dogs were admitted to Pennine Veterinary Referrals in Richmond, North Yorkshire. Kenai underwent specialist surgery on Monday (11 May) to repair the fracture and strengthen the leg and is now at home recovering. Miki’s surgery is scheduled for Friday (15 May).

Charity founder Kieran Stanbridge said: “Miki and Kenai both served with enthusiasm and commitment during their time with the police, but the job has taken a toll on their bodies and they’ve been left in daily pain due to arthritis and hip dysplasia.

“Now they both need surgery to repair these major injuries so they can run and play again. They’ve both got long lives ahead and we want to ensure they can enjoy it to the fullest.

“We’re incredibly proud to be there for Miki and Kenai, but we need your help, so please donate if you can – every single pound will go to good use.”

Miki’s story

Miki lives in Northallerton with his former handler, Claire Starkey, her husband, and their 12 other dogs, including Claire’s working search and detection dog, spaniel PD Jax. The family breed and show German Shepherds.

Claire said: “Miki was so much more than a police dog to me, he is very much my best mate. So when he started to slow up and limp after work, I worried for him.

“Sadly, my fears were founded and vets confirmed that Miki was suffering from spondylosis (wear and tear in the spine) as well as hip dysplasia in both hips.

“But when his limp worsened we discovered that his cruciate ligament had ruptured and he had to have TPLO surgery to rebuild the ligament. Due to further problems with his joints, he was medically retired in October 2025.”

Claire, who has been a dog handler for seven years, registered Miki with the Thin Blue Paw Foundation, and the charity is supporting them with the cost of his treatment.

She added: “Miki was a pleasure to work with and we had some fantastic results; tracking suspects from vehicles, finding vulnerable missing people, locating missing children, and also finding key items of property discarded from burglaries.

“Miki was an excellent tracker and I could always rely on him to find what needed to be found, and detain who needed to be detained.”

Claire added: “Miki has been my superhero at work and deserves the very best of health in retirement. He is enjoying retired life; he gets to run through the countryside, albeit slowly! And he can have a ball whenever he wants.

“Miki is still young and thinks he’s a giant puppy. When he began limping badly again, I knew it had likely been caused by his other cruciate rupturing.

“He deserves to have as comfortable retirement as possible and chomp his ball to his heart’s content and I’m grateful to the Thin Blue Paw and all of its supporters for helping me to give that to him.”

Kenai’s story

Kenai was bred in Hungary before moving to the UK to join the police. He excelled at tracking and was well known throughout the force during his six years of service.

When he retired, he was adopted by a fellow police officer, but it soon became clear that the family’s children were severely allergic, and the devastated family had to find him a new home.

Ashley and his partner, Jess, from Harrogate, had only recently joined North Yorkshire Police when they spotted Kenai’s rehoming profile on the intranet at work.

Ashley said: “As soon as we met him, we fell in love. From day one, it’s like he’s always been with us.

“He’s such a good dog; he’s like a big puppy. He’s really soppy and soft; you’d never believe that he’d been a police dog trained to bite when needed.

“He loves playing fetch and as soon as you walk into a field he spins around and around wanting you to throw his ball; he’s addicted to it!

“We’re trying to give him the best retirement we can; every weekend we take him somewhere new to explore so we can introduce him to a normal pet life.”

The couple had always loved dogs and had pets before, but Kenai was their first retired police dog. They were less than a month into owning him when he broke his leg.

They contacted the Thin Blue Paw Foundation for help, as Kenai had been registered by his previous owner.

Jess added: “We called the charity from the emergency vets and Kieran kindly arranged for Kenai to be taken to a specialist referral centre nearby and said the Foundation would cover the costs. It’s been a huge weight off our mind.

“Now we can focus on getting Kenai better and helping with his long rehabilitation.”

Pensions for police dogs

The Thin Blue Paw Foundation supports more than 180 retired police dogs across the UK, assisting owners with financial help for veterinary treatment, rehabilitative therapy and medication.

Kieran added: “While we will continue to be there for retired police dogs like Miki, we believe that the Government should be doing more to support these dogs and we’re campaigning for Pensions for Police Dogs so the cost of their care doesn’t fall solely on their new owners when they hang up their harness.”

How you can help

To donate to Miki and Kenai’s fundraising appeal, visit: www.justgiving.com/campaign/north-yorkshire-police-dogs

To donate to the Thin Blue Paw Foundation more broadly, visit donate.thinbluepaw.org.uk.

To sign the charity’s petition calling for Pensions for Police Dogs, visit thinbluepaw.org.uk/pensions-for-police-dogs.

The Thin Blue Paw Foundation and PARK LiFE have also teamed up to release Bravery Bones, a new range of dog treats with 100% of the profits going to the charity. Available at thinbluepaw.org.uk/product/bravery-bones.

Ashley and Jess have asked that their surnames are not used in the media.