Dehradun: ‘Thenga’ is not your regular street dog. At just eight months, he has already become proficient at tricks only known by police veterans. Thenga (which literally means showing thumb) was first inducted in the dog squad of Uttarakhand police after he was spotted outside Dehradun police lines. Eight months on, he has proven his proficiency as a “fighter” who can take on Labradors and German Shepherds.

It was IPS Sanjay Gunjiyal who had first come up with the idea of training a street dog. According to Gunjiyal, who is the Inspector General in the Uttarakhand police force, Thenga had all the traits of a professional.

“We plan to use him (Thenga) as a sniffer particularly in rescue operations,” Sanjay Gunjiyal told News18. Earlier this month, Thenga had demonstrated the skills he had acquired during training in front of other dogs during a police parade.

Thenga like other dogs had to go through rounds of police training every morning and evening. His handler Kamlesh Pant said that although the dog was initially indisciplined, he soon turned into a ‘good boy’.

With a lean body and long legs, this pooch runs faster, has more stamina than others and keenly follows every single instruction given by his handler.

“Thenga is a full package. At present I am training two dogs, one is this street dog and another is a German Shepherd. Frankly, 'Thenga' is better than the Shepherd. He is full of energy, remains alert and happy during training sessions” Pant said.

Be it the police force or defence forces, Labradors and German Shepherds have always been the preferred choice given their alertness and prowess at sniffing out untoward elements. However, Thenga’s success has now opened up a third alternative for the forces.

In addition to this, the mongrel is also not picky about his food. In a short span of time ‘Thenga’ has befriended the dogs and the cops at police lines. Inspector General Gunjiyal said that ‘Thenga’ has proven his worth and he might open doors for other mongrels like him.

After all every dog has its day!