Photo property of Calvert County Sheriff’s Office
Prince Frederick, MD – In 2015 Special Operations K-9 implemented the Puppy Program – a test/pilot program to determine if purchasing a puppy directly from a breeder at 8 weeks of age is a viable alternative to buying adult dogs from venders at a much greater cost. A puppy costs $1,500 vice an import 15 month old dog with no training for $6,000 – $8,000. There are guarantees with an older dog; however, older dogs come with very little training. The pilot program will help determine questions such as 1) would we increase the quality of our working dogs if they were raised from a puppy and 2) would this create a significant cost savings for the Agency.
In late 2015 the Calvert County Sheriff’s Office purchased its first puppy from Avisa K9 in Miami, Florida. On January 27th 2016, the Calvert County Sheriff’s Office received a 9 week old male Belgian Malinois puppy named Arn. Arn will live with Sgt. Gregory for the next 15 months. Sgt. Gregory will continue to work with Arn every day until he is ready for service. Arn will go through a systematic routine that will enhance his bite, nose use, agility, confidence, socialization and learning.
In the end, Arn will be ready for his handler and a Police Service Dog Class. The goal is for Arn to be assigned to Dfc. Funchion and replace K-9 Jax as the S.O.T. SWAT dog in the fall of 2017.
