The idea of the police dog is not uncommon among our communities, we know that they’re out there and we have a general idea of the responsibilities that these dogs carry; but in reality what do we really know about police dogs? Everyone has their own set of feelings towards the idea of the police dog. Some people are afraid, some are curious and some are oblivious to the fact that police dogs are out there and that they have a job. The question is what exactly is their job, what can they do, who trains them, where do they live? There is so much that is unkno by the general public.
Dogs have been used for similar tasks through out time; whether their job was protection or tracking, dogs have been trained by man to perform specific tasks since the bond between man and canine was forged. It was only a matter of time before modern police forces came upon the idea of training and using these animals to better their forces. United States police dogs began service in 1907. They first hit the streets in New Jersey and New York City. These new units had a lot to learn so canine teams operated on a trial and error basis. Over the years these units gained valuable experience that lead to the development of new training methods and technology for today’s canine units. (Bryson 31).
The idea of the police dog is not a single entity; the dog has to have a handler. The dog and handler together create the police dog team or more commonly referred to as a Canine Unit. The team begins with the handler and becomes complete after the right dog for the job is chosen. There are certain types of requirements that a dog needs to meet before it can become a police dog. Some breeds of dogs are better suited for certain jobs than other breeds. The dog has to have a certain core set of behaviors; this core set helps to determine if the dog will be well suited for the stress of the training and daily life of being a police dog.
The handler’s first job is to find a suitable pup for the...