Christchurch's heroic police dog Kosmo is on the road to recovery following the attack from an alleged offender, they were in pursuit of on Thursday night.
The four year old German Shepard sustained a 4cm cut to his throat and was missing in the dark for approximately 20 minutes.
His handler Constable Regan Turner said he knew something sinister had happened when he couldn't find Kosmo.
He said there was no street lights where they were, near Kaiapoi, so it was hard trying to find him in the dark.
"It was a big game of hide and seek."
The hardest bit to swallow was running back and forth past him, but not being able to see him, said Turner.
Constable Turner says he saw the big pool of blood before he saw the cut.
"I lay down beside him and jammed my thumb in his throat to stem the bleeding.
"I definitely thought he was gonna die."
Kosmo, the Christchurch Police dog is back home resting after being stabbed in the line of duty Thursday night.
"It felt like the helicopter took ages to turn up", said the dog handler, "but to see them land next to us, it was reassuring."
The Canterbury West Coast Air Rescue Trust airlifted Kosmo to hospital, where a team of vets saw to his injuries.
After a couple of nights at the vet's, Kosmo is heading home to lie in front of the fire.
Constable Turner says it's been odd with him not being at home.
"He's part of our family."
The support from the wider New Zealand Police family was surprising to Constable Turner, who said he received messages of support from dog handlers all over the country.
Kosmo, who has been in service for two years, will be eased back into his duties after a few weeks of recovery.
Constable Turner says he's certainly done his bit in protecting us and protecting me, with Kosmo being used on thousands of jobs throughout Christchurch.
"Nothing better than you working together as one."
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