'Obi'
Police dog patrolled streets for 2 hours after fractured skull Reuters

Obi the brave police dog who suffered horrific injuries during riots in London last week is said to be recovering well.

The brave police dog whose skull was fractured during the riots patrolled the streets for two hours despite being horrifically injured. The dog was pelted with bricks, bottles and petrol bombs and was bleeding from the head but stayed on the streets as the dog played a crucial role in retaining order and helping the police manage the escalating situation on Tottenham High Road.

PC Wells has handled Obi since he was eight months old and has described the dog as part of his young family. The Police constable said he had never witnessed such a sustained attack on him or his animal and has praised the dog for his bravery.

"Obi is trained in public order, and that may be dispersing a crowd or pushing them back. We were on a stationary point when we came under heavy bombardment," he was quoted as saying by the BBC.

"There were lots of missiles coming at us, bottles, bricks, petrol bombs, street furniture, too many to count and one hit Obi on the top of the head. Initially he was a bit shocked but I gave him a check-over and tried to avoid any further injuries and after the initial shock he seemed fine so we carried on for another couple of hours," he continued.

Despite being signed off for duty until he has fully recovered, Obi only outwardly signs of injury is a small shaven patch above his eye where vets checked for bruising. Riot police were called to Tottenham High Road when trouble flared after a [peaceful march in protest of the fatal shooting of Mark Duggan.

The Met Police has almost 400 dogs for operational and breeding purposes. Around half of these are general purpose dogs used to support a variety of police operations, including public order. Smaller numbers are trained in specialist areas of detection such as explosives and narcotics.

The Met's brood bitches produce 85-90 pups a year. "Their physical presence is very powerful," he said. "There are various tactics we use, just turning up is a tactic, opening the van so people hear the dogs bark is one. The presence of the dogs means they know it is a progressive display of force," said team Sergeant Simon Reynolds.

London