OWNERS of lost dogs will be sniffed out a lot quicker by police officers thanks to a donated scanner.

The microchip scanner was given to Dorchester Police Station by staff at Castle Veterinary Clinic in Weymouth.

It will enable officers to find out straight away who lost dogs belong to and reunite them with their owner.

Veterinary nurse Sarah White said: "Without the scanner there would be a lot of paperwork involved and the dog warden would have to be called.

"But with the scanner the number should come up and there's a national database so the owner can be tracked down."

The timely scanner donation coincides with National Microchip Month, which is marked in June. Mrs White said: "More and more people are getting their animals microchipped.

"I lost my dog Amy but because she was microchipped she was able to be returned.

"We want to raise awareness so people do get their animals microchipped. Anything can be microchipped from a dog to a Koi Carp.

"It's a very simple procedure and it only costs £20."

The Bayer scanner - tested out on Amy the runaway border terrier - was collected by Police Community Support Officer Sarah Hart.