B次元官网网址

Skip to content

K9 Unit the best job in the world: VicPD handler

New dogs from Germany join the local force
10541600_web1_180209-VNE-canine1
Const. Eric Lequesne and his partner, Diesel, love police work and the special relationship they have as members of the K9 Unit. Tim Collins/Victoria B次元官网网址

New team members are joining the Victoria Police Department following a recruitment process that reached out all the way to Germany to find perfect candidates.

The three new officers are, in fact, recruits for the forceB次元官网网址檚 K-9 corps.

B次元官网网址淲e have three new German shepherds that weB次元官网网址檝e just received through a broker in Sacramento with contacts to the breeding facilities in Germany,B次元官网网址 explained Const. Eric Lequesne, one of the K9 Unit dog handlers. B次元官网网址淭hese are dogs with bloodlines that go back to generations of working dogs; the best dogs available anywhere.B次元官网网址

The dogs are exhaustively vetted, first in Europe and then upon their arrival in Canada.

B次元官网网址淲e look at whether they are environmentally suited for the job, and are capable of handling things like slick floors and metal stairways,B次元官网网址 Lequesne said. B次元官网网址淲e also check on their drive to work (some dogs, believe it or not, are lazy), and whether they are sociable enough for the job.

The human members of the pairings are similarly screened in an application process that looks at the officersB次元官网网址 physical fitness, their qualifications, service history and experience with animals.

B次元官网网址淲e make sure we select officers that can be matched to the temperament and energy of the dogs who will become their constant companions and working partners. The dogs will live with that officer, so itB次元官网网址檚 important that the officerB次元官网网址檚 living situation allows for that sort of arrangement,B次元官网网址 Lequesne said.

The new dogs, like their fellow canine officers already on the force, will undergo a rigorous course of training to qualify them for tasks that range from finding evidence, detecting drugs or firearms, searching crime scenes for suspects, and apprehending those suspects on command.

They will join the four German shepherds and three chocolate Labradors already in the K9 Unit, a complement that allows for a dog to be available for duty every evening and most days.

The unitB次元官网网址檚 Labs are generally used for the detection of drugs and explosives, while the German shepherds are more general duty dogs used for searches and the apprehension of criminals.

Sgt. Mike Chicorelli, the K9 UnitB次元官网网址檚 principle trainer, described how the dogs are prepared to go to work.

B次元官网网址淭he techniques have really gotten so much better since we got our first dog in 1984. There are a variety of techniques, but basically the dogs are trained to perform a specific job, and when they do it right, the reward they are given involves playing with a tug rope or ball. For them, itB次元官网网址檚 just a lot of fun,B次元官网网址 he said.

Of course, the job has its serious side as well. In 2013 a police dog named Quanto, with more than 100 arrests to his credit, was killed in the line of duty in Edmonton. His death prompted the enactment of B次元官网网址淨uantoB次元官网网址檚 Law (Justice for Animals in Service Act) that now imposes severe jail terms for killing or otherwise harming a police, military or service animal.

B次元官网网址淭here is obviously a risk involved, but our equipment has gotten better as well. The dogs are now outfitted with tracking harnesses and slash and stab proof vests, complete with Kevlar panels to protect them in close encounters with criminals,B次元官网网址 explained Lequesne.

B次元官网网址淲orking with the K9 Unit is the best job in the world. ItB次元官网网址檚 not often that you get to go home each night with your best friend and partner. ThereB次元官网网址檚 a special bond that develops, thatB次元官网网址檚 certain.B次元官网网址

editor@vicnews.com





(or

B次元官网网址

) document.head.appendChild(flippScript); window.flippxp = window.flippxp || {run: []}; window.flippxp.run.push(function() { window.flippxp.registerSlot("#flipp-ux-slot-ssdaw212", "Black Press Media Standard", 1281409, [312035]); }); }