By Elaine Furst For Dog Files

This is one police dog that really earned his stripes.

When police officers responded to a domestic violence call in Boise, Idaho they were told by witnesses that the suspect had attempted to strangle the victim and that he had left on foot just prior to their arrival.

Officers used telephone and text messages in an attempt to track down the suspect but they only received threatening texts in return.

By late afternoon the suspect was traced to an open field and when officers tried to flush him out, the suspect resisted.

Enter Boise Police Service dog, Ruwa, who found the suspect hiding in the bushes and per his training, bit the suspect on the arm. The suspect fought with Ruwa attempting to choke the dog using his legs. Ruwa was able to hang on but he suffered a broken tooth, which was found and removed from the suspect’s arm.

In the end, Michael R. Gillespie, 34, of Tacoma, Washington was arrested for Mistreatment of a Police Dog, Attempted Strangulation, Resisting and Obstructing Officers and Violation of a No Contact Order.

As for Ruwa, he was taken to a vet and will soon see a K9 dentist to be fitted with a steel replacement tooth or cap.