What Is the Role of a Police Dog?

German shepherds are often used as police dogs.

Highly trained dogs are often used to support law enforcement. These police dogs work directly with police handlers to fight and solve crimes. Police dogs can be specialized or multipurpose, and the size, speed and natural canine senses allow dogs to do jobs that their human counterparts cannot.

Tracking

Police dogs are commonly used to track criminals or missing persons. Some canines are trained to recognize the scent of human decomposition for tracking cadavers. Dogs are able to pick up scents from a piece of evidence or clothing and use their noses to track the scent of a specific human being. The dog leads detectives to an area where the scent is prominent, and the detectives then use their eyes and equipment to survey the area. Bloodhounds are commonly trained as police tracking dogs because of their heightened sense of smell.

Detection

Police dogs can be used to search for explosives and drugs. When a police dog is trained as a detection dog, he will specialize in only one area: narcotics or explosives. The training requirements for the two areas are different and difficult to combine. These dogs may work with law enforcement officials in buildings, vehicles and aircraft and are also trained to detect narcotics or explosives on a person's body or in luggage or packages.

Protection

Police dogs are trained to protect their handler from harm, and a big part of protection is keeping dangerous and uninvited persons away from the handler. Protection dogs usually include breeds with an intimidating appearance, such as German shepherds or rottweilers. In addition to protecting their handler, the dogs can intimidate criminals by chasing or growling. Law enforcement also uses police dog intimidation to prevent riots.

Rescue

Police dogs are also used for search-and-rescue missions. These dogs respond with law enforcement to disaster scenes to help locate missing or injured persons. Police dogs often assist with hurricane, earthquake and avalanche rescue missions. Their size allows them to enter areas that human officers cannot access.

Community Relations

Police officers educate citizens on the use of trained dogs in the field, often visiting schools or town hall meetings to introduce police dogs. The dog may perform demonstrations of its abilities and training for attendees. The dogs' use in public relations increases community awareness of the police force and tools they use.

References

• Royal Canadian Mounted Police: Police Dog Services
• Eden Consulting Group: The K9 Mission
• Canine Breeds: Types of Working Dogs
• CSST: Forensic Evidence Canines