Dogs are known as man’s best friend. They are loyal, trustworthy, and highly trainable. Not only do they have favorable personality traits, they also have enhanced smelling and hearing senses. Since they have the characteristics that are easy to work with, they are used in law enforcement agencies. They have a specialized unity within these agencies known as the “K-9 Unit”. The enhanced senses of the dogs are utilized for the purpose of tracking criminals, sniffing out illegal materials, searching buildings, looking for missing people, and doing other jobs human police officers can't do as well as a dog can. Having these dogs on the police force is a huge benefit. Their use in law enforcement goes back to the 1900s; it progressively became
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Being a canine handler is a full-time obligation. Having the dog will essentially take over an officer’s career, but under the Garcia Decision in 1986, the Supreme Court implemented that a canine handler must be reimbursed for the caring and maintenance of the dog (Grabianowski). Not just anyone can work within the K-9 unit. The officers chosen are considered to be extremely dedicated, energetic, have a strong physical condition along with a good work ethic. It is recommended that the canine receives at least eight hours of training per week while the canine officer keep accurate and detailed training records and statistics on the dog for court purposes (Rouhib). Once given proper training, a police dog and its handler can search a building better and faster compared to ten humans (Bullington). They are able to sniff out mass amounts of drugs, which is why they are an essential tool to law enforcement. Just like an officer is trained on using weapons, they must know how to properly conduct the use of canines. Keeping that prerogative in mind, canines are trained specifically to work with their handler. The bond shared between the dog and his handler is the foundation of the K-9 unit. With proper training and handling, the outcomes of these dogs are truly
Being a canine handler is a full-time obligation. Having the dog will essentially take over an officer’s career, but under the Garcia Decision in 1986, the Supreme Court implemented that a canine handler must be reimbursed for the caring and maintenance of the dog (Grabianowski). Not just anyone can work within the K-9 unit. The officers chosen are considered to be extremely dedicated, energetic, have a strong physical condition along with a good work ethic. It is recommended that the canine receives at least eight hours of training per week while the canine officer keep accurate and detailed training records and statistics on the dog for court purposes (Rouhib). Once given proper training, a police dog and its handler can search a building better and faster compared to ten humans (Bullington). They are able to sniff out mass amounts of drugs, which is why they are an essential tool to law enforcement. Just like an officer is trained on using weapons, they must know how to properly conduct the use of canines. Keeping that prerogative in mind, canines are trained specifically to work with their handler. The bond shared between the dog and his handler is the foundation of the K-9 unit. With proper training and handling, the outcomes of these dogs are truly