A law which has been given Royal Assent will give protection to service dogs and horses.
The new legislation means causing unnecessary suffering to a service animal is now an offence in England and Wales. It is inspired by German shepherd Finn, who was stabbed while trying to catch a man in 2016.
What absolutely amazing news to wake up to #Finnslaw has got Royal Assent 🐾😆😱
What an amazing legacy 🐾
I Want to thank @finnforchange and @OliverHealdUK
And of course #FabulousFinn for his selfless actions that night! pic.twitter.com/6u666AGlaE— Fabulous Finn (@K9Finn) 9 April 2019
Finn’s handler PC Dave Wardell said he was “so happy Finn has gone down in history”.
He added: “What a legacy for the job he absolutely loved doing every day of his career,”
PC Wardell and Finn were both stabbed when trying to catch and arrest a man who was suspected of robbing a taxi driver at gunpoint. The dog was stabbed in the chest but did not let go of the man until reinforcement had arrived. It was thought that Finn would not survive but he made a full recovery, he returned to duty 11 weeks later.
The 16-year-old suspect was charged with actual bodily harm in relation to wounds to PC Wardell but only faced criminal damage charges over the injuries to Finn.
Ever since PC Wardell has been campaigning for an amendment to the Animal Welfare Act 2006. In 2017, MP for North East Hertfordshire Sir Oliver Heald was given permission to bring in the Animal Welfare (Service Animals) Bill.
PC Wardell said: “This has been an amazing journey and such a positive campaign to be part of. All this positivity came from such a negative event.
“I would like to thank every single person who has supported us through this. I can’t believe we’ve made history.”
A bill receives Royal Assent once it has completed all the parliamentary stages in both the House of Commons and the House of Lords and when the Queen formally agrees to make the bill into an Act of Parliament and therefore a law.
Now I have one more #Hero! @K9Finn #FinnsLaw @RoyalFamily
❤️🐾🐾👑❤️🏴🏴 pic.twitter.com/3WppTNsfg8— Princess (@DaysinItaly) 9 April 2019
