The Dog Support Unit (DSU) is a Met Operations branch of London's Metropolitan Police, providing trained police dogs and police officer handlers
As of mid-2019, the Met reported a total of 226 dogs in operational police service, classified as 116 general purpose dogs, 53 firearms, cash, and drug search dogs, 41 explosives search dogs, 14 forensic evidence search dogs, and two digital media search dogs. The Met reported 186 officers and 20 police staff working full-time in the unit. Over the period 2009 to 2018, the dog unit budget ranged from approximately £13.2 million to approximately £15.6 million. "General purpose" dogs are German shepherds and Malinois (Belgian shepherds); search dogs included Springer Spaniels, Cocker Spaniels, and Labrador Retrievers.
Police dogs responded to the 2011 London riots, and at least one was wounded.
Alongside other Metropolitan Police units, the Dog Support Unit participated in a counter-terrorism training exercise on the River Thames in 2017. In 2018, it was reported that the Met had spent more than £1 million on a pilot project to train police dogs in counter-terrorism