The Police Dog Trust is a sniff away from a big milestone – the New Zealand Police Dogs 2026 Calendar will be out soon and marks the 10th edition of the successful fundraiser.

“Our talented photographers keep surprising us by finding new ways to show our world-class dogs at their best,” Police dogs national co-ordinator Inspector Todd Southall says.

“The competition this year was as tight as ever, but with so many incredible images of our dogs and pups at work and play, it’s made for another great calendar.”

The images for the 2026 edition were selected from more than 300 entries from 11 Police forensic photographers.

In the end, one “snapper” nabbed the top prizes. The winning image and both highly commended certificates were awarded to Senior Constable Alex Stammers, an Auckland-based forensic photographer covering Tāmaki Makaurau.

Alex’s winning image, which features as the 2026 calendar cover, shows patrol dog Teo midflight, after leaping off a bank into a lake to catch a toy. Alex’s highly commended photos are a striking black and white image of patrol dog Sam and his handler during a training exercise, and one of armed offenders squad dog Worg with his handler and back-up during a training exercise at an abandoned mansion.

In addition to the feature images in the 13-month calendar, there are 26 smaller photos spread throughout and an A3 double-sided pullout poster.

The calendars, which cost $20 plus shipping, are available through the Cop Shop. All proceeds aid the work of the New Zealand Police Dog Charitable Trust, which supports Police dog breeding, research and development programmes over and above NZ Police’s
investment.