A retired (September 2000) operational Sub Officer having served for 34 years with the Lancashire Fire and Rescue Service. Pre-retirement, a semi-professional trainer/breeder/handler of working gundogs for over 30years and an original member of the British International Rescue Dogs team (BIRD).

Upon retirement from the Fire Service, established SCS (Specialist Canine Services) International a small private company specialising mainly in the provision of Fire Investigation Dog and similar services to Fire Authorities both in the UK and abroad. A member of the British Institute of Professional Dog Trainers (BIPDT)

A pioneer of the use of Fire Investigation Dogs in the UK fire services; the Handler/Trainer & Owner of the Lancashire Fire & Rescue Service's Fire Investigation Dogs. Currently the only person in the UK to both train and handle this type of Specialist Search Dog on a routine 24/7 x 365day basis.

Responsible for the training of the majority of the current UK F.I.Dog Teams, for Hertfordshire Fire & Rescue Service (the first female handler in Europe), for West Yorkshire, Avon, West Sussex, East Sussex, Northampton, Merseyside and West Midlands Fire Services and also (as a consultant) six Teams for the Malaysia Fire & Rescue Service

Fire Investigation Dogs trained and handled by myself have been involved in many hundreds of investigations. Incidents such as murder and attempted murder, suicides, suspicious deaths, multiple fatalities, arson, multi million pound fire losses and incidents involving industrial, commercial, domestic, agricultural premises and vehicle fires are all regularly attended. For example during 2003 we (SCS International) attended approximately 100 serious fire scene investigations, which included 27 fatalities, seven murder investigations and numerous cases involving multi million pound fire loss due to arson.

Currently the Lancashire, Merseyside, Greater Manchester, Cheshire and West Yorkshire Fire Services and the Laboratories of the Government Chemist (LGC) routinely utilise the services of the SCS International Fire Investigation Dog Teams (currently 2 Handlers + 4 F.I.Dogs) and there is also a regular liaison with other agencies including the Forensic Science Service's Investigators, Police Scenes of Crime Officers, Insurance Investigators and other Fire Services throughout the UK.

Responsible for setting up the original operational training & safety programmes for the British International Rescue Dogs Team (BIRD) Handlers and the Operational Support Members of the team, at one time an Independent Assessor for the CANIS, BIRD, Global Rescue Services and RAPID UK Disaster Search Dog Teams. Working on behalf of Lancashire F&RS at an incident in Merseyside FS area, the first handler to use a "single purpose" trained DSD at a UK collapsed structure rescue since WW2.

Largely responsible for the introduction of Disaster Search Dogs to the UK Fire Services in collaboration with the original BIRD Team. In 1994 undertook a feasibility study for the Lancashire F& R Service's UKFSSAR Team (Provision of Disaster Search Dogs for UKFSSART - a Feasibility Study - published April 1995)

Although not currently handling a DS Dog still maintaining an active interest with the discipline, in 2005 trained the Merseyside Fire Services D/U Search Dog Team who have since been deployed successfully on a number of occasions within the MFS area and also nationally as the responding Team to the Birmingham storm damage incident in July 2005

Organised and directed on behalf of the Lancashire Fire & Rescue Service (1999), a Disaster Search Dog Trainer/Handler course for the Hong Kong Police, the first training course of its kind ever to be undertaken by a UK Fire Service.

All the information given above is, to the best of my knowledge and belief, correct as of August 2005 and can be substantiated by documentary evidence and independent witnesses should anyone wish to call into question any of the content of this CV.

Dave Peplow - August 10th 2005