K-9 profile: Inside the world of a police dog

“I’d say within 20 minutes of being deployed Diego located this small trail that no one had looked. Five kilometers down that trail, five days after she went missing, there was a lady sitting underneath a tree who was lost and cold and hungry. It was a really good feeling,” Sansome added.

That was just one of the corporal’s stories about the importance of what canine officers are capable of. Sansome said dogs simply have skills and natural abilities humans can’t possibly measure up to.

Sansome said a general duty dog, like Diego, is capable of sniffing out nine common street drugs along with tracking the scent of a criminal or a missing person. He added a dog can’t pass training until it can pick up a scent from a two kilometer area an hour after the scent has been laid. The dogs can also pick up a scent from a contaminated area, meaning there have been other people walking through the same area.

Sansome added there are two different types of K-9 dogs: Ones trained to sniff out drugs and others for explosives. The corporal said dogs are never trained to sniff out both because it is important the human officers know what the dog has found.

“You don’t want to bring in the bomb squad if a dog finds drugs,” Sansome said.

Being a part of the K-9 unit is also requires being on call 24 hours a day.

“Even on my days off I have to be available at a moment’s notice,” Sansome said. “If my wife wants to take a trip to Saskatoon we can’t travel in the same vehicle. I have to take the truck because if I get called I have to leave and go right to the scene. She can’t travel with me because I don’t know where I will be called to and I can’t drop her off.”

The corporal said unlike pedestrian vehicles, his truck is specially equipped for the dogs to stay in it for longer periods of time. The truck is fitted with water and also has an air-conditioner and heater, which will activate and keep the car at room temperature for the dogs.

Sansome added the dedication in applying is also something many officers aren’t willing to do. He said it took him five years just to become involved with the K-9 unit and then another four to become a handler. The corporal said the minimum wait time to become part of the K-9 unit now is eight years.

Catching bad guys and finding missing people isn’t necessarily the bulk of the job for the K-9 unity either. Sansome said he and Diego do a lot of education. They partners travel to schools to teach people not to be afraid of the dog and more importantly, to respect him.

“If you see the dog on the job, please don’t walk up and pet him,” Sansome said. “I really want the public to know that the dog is working and to let him work.”

Sansome currently trains dogs for use all over Canada. He said Diego is getting ready for retirement and Soap is being trained to replace Diego as Sansome’s partner.

Sansome was partnered up with Diego when the dog was 17-months-old and have been together every since. The corporal said Diego was assigned to him as a replacement for his previous dog. Sansome said once Diego officially retires, he will likely adopt him, but isn’t completely sure because there can be complications.

“What it comes down to is sometimes you have a working dog and he is so used to spending all day with me; then all of the sudden I am going to work with a new dog and he is staying home and depression can start to sink in.” Sansome said.

The corporal compared it to humans retiring. He said older people will look out the window and see youth running around playing sports and doing things they can’t anymore and it will make them a bit depressed. Sansome said the dogs can feel the same way and in the end he will do what is best for Diego.

“He will most likely stay with me and my wife but, if I feel the best thing for him is a wide open anchorage where he can run and lay by the fire and chase squirrels, well then he’ll do that,” Sansome added.

Greg.higgins@jpbg.ca

On Twitter @realgreghiggins.

by Greg Higgins

K-9 profile: Inside the world of a police dog

What's Trending