PETALING JAYA, June 2 — A police dog in the United Kingdom is expected to make a full recovery after suffering a horrific knife attack by an armed suspect last weekend.
The incident occurred when the canine named Kaiser was on patrol with his handler PC Mark Woolcott on Sunday night in Orpington, south London, according to a news piece on the Metropolitan Police website.
The pair were alerted to a report of an intruder in the back garden of a house on Luxted Road and began scouring the area alongside other officers.
They found the suspect down a track behind the house and Kaiser leapt into action to subdue him.
The man was armed with a large kitchen knife and stabbed Kaiser up to five times on the top of his head and once below his eye during the struggle.
Despite the repeated blows from the blade, Kaiser managed to pin down the suspect long enough for other officers to grab hold of him.
The Metropolitan Police said Kaiser was immediately taken to the vet to treat his injuries after the attack.
“He was rushed to the vets where thankfully the blows to the top of his head were found to have struck bone, narrowly avoiding lasting injury, or worse.
“He required stitches and was kept in overnight for observation but is expected to make a full recovery,” said the Metropolitan Police in its report.
The Metropolitan Police also shared a photo of the pooch on its Facebook page yesterday.
Kaiser’s soulful gaze won over the hearts of social media users and his photo has more than 12,000 reactions and 4,400 shares so far.
Metropolitan Police Taskforce superintendent Emma Richards said that Kaiser is “lucky to be alive” after the harrowing incident.
She also paid tribute to Woolcott, who will be off-duty for a few weeks after breaking his wrist during the attack.
“I want to pay tribute to Kaiser and PC Woolcott for the immense bravery they showed in tackling this armed man.
“Kaiser was stabbed multiple times in the head and is lucky to be alive.
“My thoughts are also with the officer who sustained a broken wrist. I wish him a speedy recovery and hope to see him back on duty as soon as he is able,” said Richards.
The Metropolitan Police confirmed that a 43-year-old man was responsible for the knife attack and has been detained under the Mental Health Act.
He reportedly suffers from several mental health issues and is currently being treated at a facility for his condition.
