---

There are those who say law enforcement is more than just a job-- it’s a calling.  And then there’s the K-9 units. These dogs and their handlers not only live for the personal satisfaction of performing their jobs well, but they are a 24/7 part of helping the community.

Chisago County Sheriff’s Deputy Dustin Swenson knows all about this.  It is, “100 percent a lifestyle,” he said.  A K 9 handler sees his dog more than his own family members, he continued.  “We do 12 hour shifts and we go home and when most people are done working, it’s not that way with us.”  His experience is that K 9 units  respond at all hours and under all sorts of circumstances.

Last weekend, Swenson was celebrating his dog, Kilo’s retirement from the sheriff’s roster,  and introducing to the public his new K9 “Recon.”   

Deputy Chad Stenson was also at the event with his dog “Delta.”  

Stenson agrees with Swenson.  “It’s the funnest, but at the same time,  the hardest thing I have done,” said Stenson.

The retiring Kilo is estimated to have responded to 300 incidents during his seven year sheriff’s department career; including property incidents where thieves need to be tracked, a suspect fleeing a federal marshal, there’s been a variety of cases.  

Swenson has found transitioning to a new canine partner can be a little difficult.  As in any relationship, Recon reacts to commands and goes about his chores in a different manner from the way Kilo operated.  

Kilo’s been off-duty for a few months now,  but at his retirement bash in North Branch last weekend he was eager to chase the “suspect” and pulled on the leash to be allowed into the K 9 skills demonstration.

Sheriff Rick Duncan explained two K-9 units are approximately what he can accommodate in the budget, but if he could, he’d have a dozen K-9 units.  A major donation from Peterson’s Mill in North Branch eliminates dog food costs for the program,  and this has been a huge help, Duncan said.

At a pricetag of about $5,000 per dog, the dogs (all male shepherds here) come well-trained with foundational skills.  They are extremely useful almost as soon as they arrive and prove themselves over and over in the field;  tracking bad guys, saving man hours, protecting personnel and avoiding an impossible-to-calculate number of incidents which could have escalated without the dog being on-scene.

Some fun facts about k-9 units shared at the retirement event, include:

~ Dog squad cars are equipped with a sensor for monitoring interior temperature. The sensor can remotely alert the handler if the vehicle is overly warm and the air conditioner can be activated.  This is why you will normally see a parked K 9 unit with its engine running.

~ There’s food and water provided in fixed containers in the vehicle  The dog gets two-thirds of the backseat and the offender, separated by plexiglass,  gets one third.

~ The law enforcement officer can open the dog’s side door remotely and release the dog.  One training exercise Swenson described is “Hide and Seek.”  It involves leaving the squad parked, and the handler will hide, and remotely release the dog, who must locate his handler.

~ The majority of working K 9 dogs are male.

~ There are certification courses completed annually.  The prevalence of lawsuits created an atmosphere where K-9  dogs train and are assessed constantly to be very precise and able to stand down or become aggressive upon command.
 










 

---