In this Christmas and 5th birthday special programme, creators Kate Fairweather and John Welsman pick some of their favourite episodes to celebrate five years of fun making podcasts together.

Episodes referred to in this episode:

• The National Police Trials 2025
• Nathan Foy on the guide dogs that have taken him from boyhood to parenthood,
• Harley, the peanut allergen detection dog
• From first steps to a Canicross ultramarathon for Logan the spaniel and owner Sara
• Billy, the drugs detection dog of the West Midlands Police

Dogs with Jobs features the full range of working dogs, therapy dogs, military and service dogs, assistance dogs, bio detection dogs and other, random occupations such as truffle hunting, modelling and more. Browse more dogs with interesting jobs.

Do you work your dog or dog?

Get in touch with Kate Fairweather if you’re interested in coming on the show on team@shineradio.uk.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A window into the working life of Billy, a young spaniel with a promising career ahead of him as a drugs detection dog.

Billy’s handler, Police Constable Paul King describes Billy’s training and how they navigate the leap into operational work.

There's plenty of detail along the way - the difference between proactive and passive drug scanning. Drugs detection work is a great game in some ways - criminals extend themselves to come up with ever more ingenious ways of hiding them and use decoy smells so Paul is alive to any opportunity to keep Billy’s skills evolving, too.

Paul explains why the greatest tool in the police toolbox is a dog's nose.

Recorded in the back of a police van at Crufts, the UK's largest dog show, in March 2025.

(I forgot to photograph Billy, hence going with the stock photo...I will replace it! )

You may also enjoy these connected episodes about the many disciplines within the police:

• Oreo, the digital asset dog
• The UK's National Police Dog Trials 2025
• P.D. Viper the firearms support dog
• P.D. Chase and the career arc of a general purpose police dog
• P.D. Meika, who searches for London criminals' cash, drugs and firearms
• P.D. Ted, the explosives detection dog with the West Midlands Police
• P.D. Jax the victim recovery dog with Hampshire & Isle of Wight Constabulary

• Mika, the well being and trauma support dog in the Metropolitan Police
• Champ, the engagement dog working in child protection in the Victoria police

Do you work your dog?

Or perhaps you know someone else who might like to come on the show? I love all and any working dogs and am always looking for dogs to interview.

Get in touch with me, Kate, via team@shineradio.uk.

Find more dogs with interesting jobs.

© & ℗ Kate Fairweather, 2025

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Short but sweet, this episode of Dogs with Jobs was recorded in New York City, on the run up to Thanksgiving holiday.

Koa is a Rhodesian Ridgeback - not a breed you see in therapy work too often.

His owner, Andy Honda, is a Rhodesian Ridgeback fan, and chose Koa as a future running partner. They live a couple of blocks from Central Park in Manhattan, New York City.

Andy explains how Koa ended up working in the therapy field with Dogs with Jobs presenter, Kate Fairweather.

More about Koa's life and the book Andy mentions on Christmas in New York here.

Other therapy and wellbeing dog stories:

• Baloo, the injured police dog turned award-winning wellbeing dog
• Champ, the engagement dog working in child protection in the Victoria police in Australia
• Sprout, the care home visitor
• Mika, the support dog working in the UK's Metropolitan Police
• Louis the hospital volunteer attends a veterans' support session
• Mabel, emotional support worker in the fire service
• Phantom, the secondary school reading assistant

Interested in therapy work with your dog?

These are just some of the orgnaisations – there are many others so please do research this wherever you are based.

• Koa and Andy volunteer in New York City: The Good Dog Foundation
• Therapy Dog organisations in the UK: Pets as Therapy, Therapy Dogs Nationwide
• Patricia Bland of Pets as Therapy, the UK charity, explains what qualities she looks for in a therapy dog

Do you work your dog?

Or perhaps you know someone else who might like to come on the show? I love all and any working dogs - and am always looking for dogs to come on the show.

Get in touch with me, Kate, via team@shineradio.uk.

Find more dogs with interesting jobs.

© & ℗ Kate Fairweather, 2025

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.