Who really are The Dogs in Slow Horses? Details explored as Season 5 approaches

Slow Horses isn't just about a few spies hiding out in Slough House. The show also gives us a look into MI5's cryptic layers of control, and one of the most interesting parts of that world is "The Dogs." In short, The Dogs are MI5's tough and strong internal security unit.

They keep order inside the agency, investigate the wrongdoing among officers, and carry out tactical operations all across the UK.

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Inside MI5’s watchdogs: What The Dogs actually do in Slow Horses

In Slow Horses The Dogs are the force that makes sure MI5 doesn't lose control of its own people. Unlike regular field agents, their main job is guarding the agency from the inside.

They are the ones patrolling Regent's Park headquarters, keeping watch when things turn messy, and stepping in when MI5 officers themselves go off course. That's why they're nicknamed The Dogs. They're meant to sniff out trouble, even from within their own ranks.

When action kicks off, they're armed and ready. Over the seasons, we've seen them use Glock 17s, MP5 submachine guns, and carbines during missions. They are the ones called in when terrorists, rogue spies, or compromised officers need handling.

But their work isn't limited to headquarters security. They've been deployed at airports, city raids, and even countryside operations, often coordinating with local police forces to bring order back.

Hierarchy matters in this world. The Head of Security commands The Dogs, and they typically answer to higher MI5 desks like the Deputy Director-General. At times, they've even taken direct orders from the Director General, depending on the crisis.

In Slow Horses, that constant shift in authority reveals just how much the chain of command can be twisted for political convenience.

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The Dogs in action: From Nick Duffy to Emma Flyte

The unit's presence has been central in some of the show's tensest moments. In Slow Horses season 1 Nick Duffy, then Head of Security, led a raid to rescue Hassan Ahmed from the Sons of Albion. But the mission carried a bitter twist where Diana Taverner manipulated events behind the scenes, blaming Jackson Lamb and his team for an undercover agent's death.

That kind of political steering shows how The Dogs are often used less as watchdogs and more as enforcers for the people above them.

Later seasons of Slow Horses pushed them into even darker places. We get to see how Duffy's team executed Larry, a Sons of Albion member, under the guise of "self-defense," planting a gun to justify the shooting. The same episode saw them sent in by helicopter to take down Curly, but Slough House agents blocked the kill shot, forcing Curly into police custody instead.

Once Emma Flyte stepped in as the new Head of Security, we saw a shift. She tried to bring back some independence to The Dogs, but her authority was constantly undermined by the First and Second Desks, especially when orders clashed.

At one point, we get to see a raid go horribly wrong when a booby trap killed several Dogs, underscoring how expendable even MI5's "guard dogs" can be in the bigger picture. And later, four of them were killed outright in an ambush while escorting River Cartwright.

These moments drive home the fact that while they seem unstoppable, The Dogs are just as vulnerable as the agents they chase.

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In Slow Horses, The Dogs embody MI5's sharp edge: always armed, always loyal, but often misused by those at the top. They investigate spies, guard headquarters, and storm into crises, yet their authority is only as strong as the leaders pulling the strings.

Whether under Nick Duffy or Emma Flyte, they remind us that in the world of espionage, even the watchdogs are pawns in a much larger game.

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