Police dog handlers marry after falling in love while fighting crime Damian Smart, 37, and Lindsay Whitehouse, 33, met in dog unit in 2010 Lindsay walked down aisle by canine colleague Nina at blessing ceremony Damian's 'best man' was his six-year-old German Shepherd Shadow They got married last month, but dogs were not allowed in the church Helped catch mosque bomber Pavlo Lapshyn who was jailed for 40 years When you're hunting burglars, armed robbers and one or two suspected terrorists, there isn't much time for sentiment. But the rigours of life on the frontline hasn't stopped police dog handlers Damian Smart, 37, and Lindsay Whitehouse, 33, falling in love and tying the knot. The couple, who work together in the West Midlands Police Dog Unit, have now celebrated their marriage in fitting style with their canine companions right by their side. From the front line to down the aisle: Police dog handlers Damian Smart and Lindsay Whitehouse pictured with the vicar after their special wedding blessing ceremony alongside trusty canine companions Shadow and Nina Without their dogs on the big day: The couple got married last month, but their canines were not allowed in the wedding venue because the church did not have kennels Since they met four years ago, they have used their dog handling skills to track down race-hate killer Pavlo Lapshyn who attempted to bomb mosques in the Black Country last year. The couple got married last month, although their trusted canines were banned from the wedding venue because the church did not have kennels. But they let their police hounds take part in a special blessing ceremony yesterday. Lindsay, who has been with the force since 2007, was walked down the aisle by her trust police dog Nina while Damian's 'best man' was his six-year-old German Shepherd Shadow. Declaring their love for each other: The couple, who met three years ago, took part at a special wedding blessing ceremony at West Midlands Police's dog training centre in Balsall Common, West Midlands They took part at a special wedding blessing ceremony at West Midlands Police's dog training centre in Balsall Common, West Midlands. The couple, from Wednesbury, are the first married couple to work at the force's dog unit. Damian, who met Lindsay in January 2010 on a police dog training refresher course, said: 'We're both dog lovers - we have five between us, including our police dogs - but as the wedding venue didn't have kennelling facilities it wasn't possible for them to be involved on our big day. 'Plus paw prints wouldn't have looked good on Lindsay's white dress. 'Because dogs play such a big part in our lives - and that it's the first time two handlers have tied the knot - we wanted to get them involved. So we arranged a special wedding blessing with a police chaplain; Shadow and Nina were impeccably behaved and were the perfect guests. Jailed: Ukranian born Pavlo Lapshyn faces 40 years in prison for the murder of Mohammed Saleem, 82, who he stabbed as he walked home from prayers, and also planting a series of bombs outside mosques In their line of duty, the couple helped track down Pavlo Lapshyn, who was jailed for 40 years in October after murdering a pensioner and bombing three mosques in a racist hate campaign. They have also carried out high-security sweeps of the Conservative and Labour Party conferences as well as tours of Northern Ireland. Shadow has caught more than 30 crime suspects in his three-year career to date including a car-jacker, a robber who stole a cabbie's takings and torched his taxi and, just two weeks ago, a man wanted over an armed security van raid. He was also in the thick of 2011's summer riots, helping bring order to the region's streets, and has helped keep order at several English Defence League protests. Meanwhile Nina has only been operational for a matter of months but has already caught a suspected burglar. Damian added: 'Recently Nina led Lindsay to a burglary suspect who tried to evade capture by hiding on a flat roof 25ft up and she's proved rock-solid during the EDL violence in July where she stood her ground in the face of aggression and missiles.'