AN HEROIC police dog who spent years catching burglars, rescuing vulnerable people and comforting pensioners has died suddenly.

Loyal police dog Ziva died in the arms of her best friend and handler PC Helen Kane after eight years of dedicate service to Northumbria Police.

The eight-year-old Dutch Herder had not left Helen’s side since joining her family as an eight-week-old puppy back in 2012. But last week she was rushed to the vets after her concerned mum realised she wasn’t acting like her usual self.

It was then that Helen learnt the devastating news that Ziva had been battling an aggressive form of cancer while keeping the streets safe in her role as a K9.

On the advice of the vet, Helen had to make the heart-breaking decision to let Ziva go so that she didn’t live out her days in pain. That brought to a close a glittering career during which she caught hundreds of burglars, rescued dozens of missing people and even comforted the elderly.

Helen has paid tribute to both her “best friend” and an “amazing police dog”.

“When I joined the dog section eight years ago, I was given Ziva as a puppy, she was my first police dog and I could not have wished for a better dog,” said Helen. “She has done nothing other than make me proud since the day I picked her up and has loved every minute of her service in the police."

“Not only was Ziva an amazing police dog who has caught numerous baddies and looked me, she has been my best friend and a big part of my family.

“She has barely left my side in our eight years together so I can’t begin to describe the devastation of losing her.

“The diagnosis came out of the blue and there was no time to prepare for losing her which has made her death even more difficult to deal with.

“She wasn’t long from a relaxed retirement by the fire but she loved every second of her work and at least I know she isn’t in pain anymore.

“I will miss her, every who knew her will miss her but nobody will forget what she did for this Force and the people who call it home.”

As well as putting baddies behind bars and tracking down missing people, Ziva also became a popular member of the community.

While off duty she spent afternoons drinking tea with residents of a care home and starred in media campaigns, including dressing up as a ghost for Halloween last year.

Her dedication to the job also saw her nominated for Northumbria Police’s ‘Dog of the Year 2019’ following her outstanding efforts in locating a vulnerable missing woman in Wallsend.

During that job, Ziva was able to track the woman’s scent through a heavily wooded area in the dead of night and ultimately saved her life.