A police dog's sense of smell is more valuable than his bite. A German Shepherd’s sense of smell is much stronger than any human. Police dogs are called K-9's. There are many different types of jobs for a police dog to do. They can sniff out drugs, bombs, and human bodies. They are also good at search and rescue and protecting people.
K-9 dogs are considered police officers and are cared for and respected just like any other police officer. In New Jersey a law called "Solo's Law" was passed making it a crime to shoot and kill a K-9 dog. The law was named for a K-9 named Solo who was killed in the line of duty.
Once dogs can pass the tests for strength, sociability, and behavior they then go to a handler to live and train. It takes 14 weeks for dogs to learn to sniff out a new smell. Police start to train the dogs while playing hide-and–seek with a white towel. Then, they introduce new smells so they can find things like drugs, dead bodies, and even bombs! If a dog finds a bomb, he immediately sits down and doesn’t jump or go wild. In fact, the chemical (nitrate) they search for is found in VCR tapes, shoe polish, fertilizers, and ... if you can believe it ... in soda!
There is a nationwide effort going on right now to get bullet proof vests for k-9's.
To learn how you can help protect police dogs, click here.
