A Dutch shepherd and Beligan Malinois accompanied Madison patrol officers on duty Wednesday, marking the first day of operation for the police department's new canine unit.
The two dogs, aged sixteen months and two years, respectively, joined Arno, another Dutch shepherd who has been with Madison Police for six years, to form the new complete unit.
\The whole reason [the unit] exitsts today is because we've had a number of interested citizens in the community,"" said Sgt. Chris Boyd, who is Arno's personal handler.
Unable to afford the canine unit itself, the police department received the funding for the dogs from Capital K9's, a non-profit group established last year.
The UW-Madison School of Veterinary Medicine will provide medical care for the dogs, including complete physicals and any preventative medicine they may need.
The police dogs were imported from Holland. After arriving in the United States, out-of-state trainers taught the dogs special skills they would need for the work ahead of them.
""What we're hoping is that they will be used in serious, possibly danergous crimes,"" said Boyd.
As all three dogs are dual-purpose, officers can use them to track and apprehend suspects and conduct building searches, as well as work in narcotics, which was the division Arno worked in previously.
However, while the dogs will serve in a variety of cases, each one is paired with one specific officer. They travel home with their officers at the end of each day.
""You're with them all day at home, and then all day at work,"" Boyd said. ""You get pretty used to each other.""
Boyd added that the bond between officer and dog continues after the dog's retirement, as officers adopt the dogs once they complete their service to the department.
