There is now a special first-aid kit for the police dogs in North Rhine-Westphalia.
Gradually, all service dog handlers are to be equipped with it.
The set was developed by the State Office for Police Training, Further Education and Personnel Affairs (LAFP) together with scientists and veterinarians.
"The included bandages are precisely tailored to the dog's anatomy," said a LAFP spokesman for the FAZ. Police officers could "treat gunshot and stab wounds in the chest and back area of the dogs" or stop bleeding with a tie system adapted to the dog's leg.
"Service dogs act as partners alongside police officers in dangerous situations, and there is a risk of injury for the animals, just like for the officers."
Officials at the LAFP in Selm train how to use first aid materials professionally.
There is also a so-called dog simulator with its own cardiovascular system, blood circulation that can be adapted to the situation and the lifelike reproduction of all vital organs.
Dog handlers use this dog puppet, which was developed in the same way as a first aid human puppet, to train the resuscitation of the cardiovascular system of their colleague on four paws, ventilation, cardiac massage, treatment of a heavily bleeding wound or a tracheotomy.
"Being trained in this way, people and dogs gain valuable time in the event of an injury before they can be treated by a veterinarian," said the LAFP spokesman.
The North Rhine-Westphalian police alone keeps 300 service dogs.
The animals have become an integral part of the work of investigators.
They are not only indispensable work colleagues for drug investigators, but are also trained to detect explosives, incendiary agents, banknotes, security or corpses.
In the age of ever faster digitization, sniffing for data carriers is also becoming more and more important when solving criminal cases of all kinds.
Data carrier detection dogs regularly provide important services, especially when it comes to clarifying cases of mass child abuse, such as in Lügde, Münster or Bergisch Gladbach.