Not quite a ‘dog’s life’ for the Police’s canine officers

THE Police, faced with a constant shortage of police dogs, are building a breeding facility near Gobabis to breed and train canine officers.

The facility is under construction at the Pius Joseph Kahunda Police Training College in the Omaheke Region. The facility will have modern equipment such as heated rooms for puppies and enough space for them to exercise.The Police already have one breeding pair and as soon as the facility is finished they plan to obtain more breeding pairs and start in all earnest.The Dog Unit of the Namibian Police has repeatedly appealed to the public to donate dogs suitable to be trained as patrol dogs, narcotics or explosives sniffer dogs.The unit used to received dogs from South Africa, but because of the Soccer World Cup to be held there in 2010, the South African police need to train 5 000 dogs for their own use and there are not enough dogs to go around.A SUITABLE CANINE The breeds most suitable for police duty are Labrador retrievers, Malinois (Belgian) shepherds and German shepherds.Because these dogs work closely with the public, they cannot be vicious.A puppy selected to become a police dog is allowed to play and grow up until it reaches the age of one year.Then the serious training starts.Police officers interested in working in the Dog Unit are also carefully screened and once selected, the officer is paired with a puppy and they start their training together.A very close bond develops between dog and handler and they spend every day in each other’s company.Once a dog becomes too old for active police duty, it is examined by a veterinarian who determines whether it should be put down or not.The reason for this is that the shepherd breeds tend to have weak hips, which give in as the dog gets older.This causes the dog unnecessary pain and euthanasia is the most humane option.If a dog does not show symptoms of this hip problem, the dog handler has the first option to buy the dog from the Police.The officer’s house and yard are first inspected to make sure that a dog can be kept there and that the officer will look after it properly.Should the new premises not be up to standard, the officer cannot buy the dog and it will then be sold to other interested parties.This system is open to abuse, however.The Police recently sold a retired police dog called Max to an officer who had worked with Max for nine years.The officer met all the criteria for adopting his former partner, but later it came to light that he was using Max to breed, and was selling the puppies.”We could not know that a man who had worked with a dog so closely could suddenly turn his back on the same dog and maltreat him,” says Chief Inspector Piet Steenkamp, who has been with the Dog Unit for 30 years.People who decide to donate dogs to the Police can rest assured that they will have good life though, says Chief Inspector Steenkamp.They sleep in very clean kennels with shade and blankets.They have a healthy diet including meat, bones, milk and Epol dry food.Police dogs are also examined by a veterinarian every six months to ensure that they are in perfect health.The facility will have modern equipment such as heated rooms for puppies and enough space for them to exercise.The Police already have one breeding pair and as soon as the facility is finished they plan to obtain more breeding pairs and start in all earnest.The Dog Unit of the Namibian Police has repeatedly appealed to the public to donate dogs suitable to be trained as patrol dogs, narcotics or explosives sniffer dogs.The unit used to received dogs from South Africa, but because of the Soccer World Cup to be held there in 2010, the South African police need to train 5 000 dogs for their own use and there are not enough dogs to go around.A SUITABLE CANINE The breeds most suitable for police duty are Labrador retrievers, Malinois (Belgian) shepherds and German shepherds.Because these dogs work closely with the public, they cannot be vicious.A puppy selected to become a police dog is allowed to play and grow up until it reaches the age of one year.Then the serious training starts.Police officers interested in working in the Dog Unit are also carefully screened and once selected, the officer is paired with a puppy and they start their training together.A very close bond develops between dog and handler and they spend every day in each other’s company.Once a dog becomes too old for active police duty, it is examined by a veterinarian who determines whether it should be put down or not.The reason for this is that the shepherd breeds tend to have weak hips, which give in as the dog gets older.This causes the dog unnecessary pain and euthanasia is the most humane option.If a dog does not show symptoms of this hip problem, the dog handler has the first option to buy the dog from the Police.The officer’s house and yard are first inspected to make sure that a dog can be kept there and that the officer will look after it properly.Should the new premises not be up to standard, the officer cannot buy the dog and it will then be sold to other interested parties.This system is open to abuse, however.The Police recently sold a retired police dog called Max to an officer who had worked with Max for nine years.The officer met all the criteria for adopting his former partner, but later it came to light that he was using Max to breed, and was selling the puppies.”We could not know that a man who had worked with a dog so closely could suddenly turn his back on the same dog and maltreat him,” says Chief Inspector Piet Steenkamp, who has been with the Dog Unit for 30 years.People who decide to donate dogs to the Police can rest assured that they will have good life though, says Chief Inspector Steenkamp.They sleep in very clean kennels with shade and blankets.They have a healthy diet including meat, bones, milk and Epol dry food.Police dogs are also examined by a veterinarian every six months to ensure that they are in perfect health.