HE has done more than his fair share of sniffing out criminals.

And he’s followed up plenty of leads.

Now one of Dorset Police’s most popular dogs is hanging up his collar and hat to retire at the grand old age of eight.

The 42 kilo German Shepherd was named Echo after a competition in the Daily Echo.

But his name was changed to Tango for operational reasons and he has enjoyed a successful career with his partner in crime, PC Steve Budd.

Despite initial concerns about his suitability as a police dog, Tango has made it to retirement age and spent his last day at the office His career highlights include tackling a knife-wielding, drunken man, tracking stolen goods and finding a missing person near the cliffs at Portland at night.

He has also tracked offenders across heathland and made so-called street bites looking after PC Budd and his colleagues.

A guest appearance in Hello magazine also helped to secure his celebrity status after he took part in a dog display with TV star Martin Clunes.

Tango will continue to live with his handler, as will new canine recruit Xena.

PC Budd said: “Tango was a really small, cuddly, fluffy pup. He was a complete softie and had become a little over-socialised.

“There were concerns he wasn’t up to being a police dog but he successfully went through his training which was a real achievement.”

PC Budd said Tango has looked after him in some “tricky situations” and said he is settling into life as a pet and getting to know Xena.

He added: “He has helped me in some very dodgy situations and it will be sad to see him go from work but now he can lie in front of the fire at home. I could never let him go after all these years.”

Dorset Police currently has 12 German Shepherd dogs, mainly used for general purpose duties, nine sniffer dogs and latest recruit Gus, a German shepherd now five-months-old.

Highlights

- Receiving a Divisional Commander’s Commendation for tackling a drunken, violent man armed with a knife

- Appearance in celebrity mag Hello after taking part in a dog display with actor Martin Clunes

- Finding a missing person near the cliffs at Portland at night

- Tracking stolen goods n Making street bites to protect PC Budd

- Tracking offenders across heathland n Making lots of children extremely happy with guest appearances at lots of schools across the county and public events