fire dog

We lost our black lab at 14 a month before Christmas and so this story brought a tear to my eye. So And Finally this week is sentimental rather than funny. The story we feature tells us:

Golden Labrador Sam joined South Wales Fire and Rescue in 2003 and attended over 5,000 incidents during his five years of service.

He was trained to sniff out petrol, lighter fuel and other substances used in arson attacks.

Sam’s handler Matt Jones said he was “instrumental in finding evidence” and he was “extremely proud” to have worked with him.

One of the most-memorable cases to Mr Jones was Sam finding evidence that helped secure the convictions of two men who set fire to a bingo hall in Ely, Cardiff which killed a firefighter in 2004.

“He was more than just a dog as he was my partner and with me 24/7,” said Mr Jones.

After he retired, Sam went to live with Mr Jones’ parents in Rhymney, Caerphilly county.

“He was kept fit and my parents were certainly not shy in spoiling him.”