Crime-fighting duo Humberside Police’s PC Dan Silcock and PD Riggs are keeping the public safe
Left: Clockwise from right, good boy PD Riggs, good girl PD Sunny, Betty and Honey. Right: PC Dan Silcock with PD Riggs(Image: PC Dan Silcock)
Six legs are definitely better than two when it comes to tracking a suspected offender and when a highly-sensitive nose for the job – and a fine set of fangs to underline that you mean business – are involved, all the better. It is why Humberside Police dog handler PC Dan Silcock and his trusty canine colleague PD Riggs are such a force to be reckoned with.
The duo were recently showing off their skills at the National Police Dog Trials, competing with the best police dogs from all over the UK to prove their mettle in tracking, searching and criminal work. PC Silcock and Belgian Malinois PD Riggs were representing Humberside for the second year running, after qualifying at the Regional Police Dog Trials.
Unfortunately, they did not cover themselves with as much glory as last year, when the pair came fourth. But PC Silcock was philosophical about their 14th placing out of 21, with “my lad” PD Riggs already a top dog to have reached the finals and with the experience to build on for next year.
“It’s still one of the highest positions for Humberside in the past ten to 15 years,” said PC Silcock. “PD Riggs tracked really well, the only issue being he tracked the ‘suspect’ the wrong way – he picked up the track at the end and started backwards.
“It did mean a massive drop in points – on the second day of the trials we were in fourth – and we went to 14th because the margins were so tight.” PC Silcock said he had felt “a bit disappointed” since, because it was not a true representation of PD Riggs’ ability or all the preparation both man and dog had put in.
“We just come back next year and do better,” he said. The Humberside force praised the officer-dog duo in a post about the 64th National Police Dog Trials that were hosted by colleagues in West Yorkshire, at Nostell.
The post said: “Whilst they didn’t win this time round, we are very proud of the duo’s hard work and preparation to get them this far, and I’m sure you will join us in giving them a round-of-a-paws for this achievement. A total of 21 police dogs from forces across the country took part in the trials, competing in a series of challenging disciplines designed to test their operational capabilities – these included tracking suspects using scent, searching buildings and open areas, and criminal work phases involving suspect apprehension, obedience and agility.”
PC Silcock said: “The issue is, I do put a lot of pressure on myself. The training for the trials is done in your own time and some other handlers did come in to help me – in some scenarios you do need more than one person.
“Hopefully we will get a bit more training in next time.” PC Silcock does not blame his dog for any hiccups they may have had; as far as he is concerned they are a team.
“In the obedience, I could have been a bit better,” he admitted. “I think the nerves got to me a bit. He makes errors, I make errors.”
PC Silcock said PD Riggs, who will be five next month, is “probably the best thing that has ever happened to me”. PD Riggs came to the force “green”, that is with no previous experience or training as a service dog, having been a pet that someone “could not cope with”, was “passed around centres” and “ended up in Goole ”, before joining Humberside Police.
PC Silcock, who joined the prison service after college, came to the force looking to work with dogs. “I’ve always had a passion for dogs,” he said.
“I set my stall out to work with them in the police and straight after my probationary period – you have to do that before specialising in any area – I applied to be a dog handler.” PC Silcock completed his training in 2022 and initially was paired with a German Shepherd called Rex, who had unfortunately picked up a couple of injuries on his course, so Riggs became PC Silcock’s canine partner.
“He’s the most naturally talented dog, to be fair. He’s very intelligent and independent – and proper needy. He is so driven and so motivated; he has given me stability.”
PC Silcock said: “The main hazard for a handler is knowing when to stop the dog as they will just keep going and going – we have to manage them as much as they manage us. My lad will have a two-hour nap after a night shift and he’s ready to go and do another ten-mile walk. He’s like the Energizer Bunny.”
Dynamic duo they surely are, but it is only half of the story. While PD Riggs is a general purpose police dog, and a specialist firearms support dog, PC Silcock is also handler of four-year-old PD Sunny, a yellow Labrador special detection dog whose job it is to sniff out drugs, cash and firearms.
Both dogs were the subject of a Humberside Police post after a particularly successful weekend in April. It said: “PD Riggs and PD Sunny were hard at work supporting officers with their canine crime fighting talents in a wide range of incidents across the force.
“Over the past two days alone, PD Riggs has played a key role in 12 arrests. From assisting as a firearms support dog following reports of a man making threats whilst in possession of a suspected weapon at an address in Hull, to tracking a wanted man through fields and woodland in North Lincolnshire.
“He also helped detain several suspects following reports of an affray in Grimsby. PD Sunny, one of our specialist detection dogs, also made a significant impact by sniffing out approximately £6,000 in hidden cash during a search of an address in Hull.”
The post went on: “Our dog handlers and police dogs provide vital support to all aspects of policing, whether that be recovering drugs, cash, and weapons, to locating missing people and suspects. From scent to scene, our Dog Section continues to make a difference in keeping our communities safe.”
PC Silcock, who was attending an explosives convention with PDs Riggs and Sunny, echoed the sentiments. He said: “Police dogs do a great job; they open up another avenue to what humans can do.
“There is so much to it, there are so many different types of work. There are victim recovery dogs who can search for decomposing bodies, for example.
“They will detect blood and bodily fluids, forensically small pieces of evidence. Then there are the digital detection dogs that will do searches for SIM cards, USBs and devices. What they offer is invaluable.”
While PD Riggs brooks no opposition when he is on duty, he is a bit of a pushover with the “girls” he shares his home life with, including PC Silcock’s partner – “he’s obsessed with her” – and the family’s two pet dogs, a miniature Dachshund called Betty and a miniature Labradoodle called Honey. “He absolutely loves them all,” he said, “and he lets them think they are in charge.”
While PC Silcock hopes there will be a good few years left to work with PD Riggs, he is already conscious of preparing him for retirement. “I’ll try to work him for as long as possible – I’d hope to have another three or four years with him – and 90 per cent of the time dogs will stay with their handlers after they retire.
“I’m slowly introducing him to coming into the house at night – Sunny stays out in her kennel – but I’m trying to calm him down a bit. Dogs don’t get an email saying ‘that’s it, you’re retired’ and they need to be able to adjust.”
It appears PC Silcock is a bit of a pushover himself, when it comes to PD Riggs. “I think I’m just as needy about him,” he said.
“I’ll buy him stuff all the time. He has so many blankets in his kennel it’s like the Ritz.”
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