Police Dog Locates Missing Mom and Baby, ‘Safe but Cold,’ on His First Day on the Job

(Dyfed-Powys Police)

A police dog has proven his prowess on his very first day on the force by locating a missing mother and her 1-year-old child on the edge of a ravine on the mountainside. The pair had spent two days lost in the vast countryside of rural Wales in the United Kingdom.

Police Constable Peter Lloyd and Dyfed Powys Police dog Max found the mom and her baby “safe, but cold.” The search team was tipped off as to the woman’s whereabouts when her car was found on a mountain road in Powys, Wales, according to a press release.

Police Constable Peter Lloyd pictured with his K-9, PD Max (Dyfed-Powys Police)

Lloyd and PD Max, a 2-year-old German shepherd cross, were assisted by the Brecon Mountain Rescue Team and a police helicopter. The dog and his handler successfully located the mother and her infant on Aug. 1 a few hours after a missing person report was made.

The woman’s cell phone was not receiving calls, and she had not been seen or spoken to in two days, arousing concern. Response officers, neighborhood policing teams, and specialist search officers visited the woman’s home and attempted to retrace her steps. Fortunately, they found her car and advanced their search into a vast area of the Powys countryside, including a small reservoir and woodland.

The vast rural landscape of Powys in Wales, United Kingdom (Screenshot/Google Maps)

“This is where PD Max’s tracking skills really came into play,” Inspector Jonathan Rees-Jones explained. “Despite only recently becoming licensed, he immediately commenced an open area search.”

After 90 minutes in the countryside, the pair spotted the mother waving for help on the edge of a steep ravine. Both she and her baby were helped down by mountain rescue and checked by the Mountain Rescue doctor after overcoming an overnight ordeal.

The isolated mountain roads of rural Powys in Wales, United Kingdom (Screenshot/Google Maps)

“[The mom and baby] were safe, but cold,” said Rees-Jones, “and appeared to have been in the area for a significant amount of time. This was a fantastic coordinated and determined team effort from everyone involved.”

The inspector then gave a special shout-out to Lloyd and Max, who both excelled on what was their very first operational day since completing training together. Notably, Lloyd only joined the police department’s dog section in February this year.

Newly licensed Heddlu Dyfed Powys Police dog Max (Dyfed-Powys Police)

Heddlu Dyfed Powys Police then took to Facebook to share Lloyd and Max’s triumphant first day, with a snap of the handler and his K-9 alongside the caption, “Well done Max.”

Comments from netizens offered hearty congratulations, including, “Fantastic job done,” and, “Perfect workmanship.”

According to the press release by the police department, Max is actually a “general purpose” police dog who has been trained to track and locate people inside buildings and outdoors, track and detain suspects, and trace discarded property.

“I was really pleased that during our first deployment as a dog team, myself and Max were able to safely locate the missing mother and baby,” Lloyd shared. “Max remained focused throughout the long search and he proved invaluable.”

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