CHELAN COUNTY SHERIFF’S OFFICE K9 IMMER TREU VOYAGE HOME, “SPUR”: FIRST GERmAN PINSCHER IN US LAw ENFORCEmENT by DEPUTY mONIKA HAYNES
L ocated in Washington State, I have worked for Chelan County Sheriff’s Office on patrol for 19 years now. In 2013, the Chelan County Sheriff’s Office received two donations to purchase another Patrol canine and a Search and Rescue (SAR) canine. I was very inter- ested in becoming a canine handler and after passing the testing process was selected as the handler for our new SAR canine. Chelan County has a total area of 2,994 square miles and is home to Lake Chelan and numerous hiking trails. Each year, the Sheriff’s Office receives several search and rescue calls and hav- ing a SAR canine is a valuable asset to our department. My research for a SAR dog began with the American Kennel Club web- site. Working breeds are known for their adaptability in various terrains which is valuable in search and res- cue work. In reading about the Ger- man Pinscher, their size, energy, work ethic, prey drive and keen sense of smell, I determined it would be ideal for search and rescue work. I was referred to Immer Treu German Pinschers by a member of the Mt. Rainier Working Dog Club. I contacted Lorraine and How- ard Shore in Sequim, Washington and spoke to Lorraine about the breed. Lor- raine and her husband are both retired law enforcement and know what a lot of the expectations are for police dogs. They are very active with their German Pinschers training and showing in Con- formation, Rally, Agility, Nose Work and Tracking so they could honestly tell me if the German Pinscher was the breed of dog I was looking for. On December 12, 2014, Spur was born! His parents, “Max”, BISS GCH CH Immer Treu Midnight Express RN CGC and “Diva”, CH Pretty-Dutch-Diva von
Deputy Haynes with SAR K9 “Spur”
Cronestein RN CGC, are both excellent tracking dogs that demonstrated great work ethic and temperaments. A Search and Rescue dog must have a stable tem- perament and a good work ethic. In addition to tracking and search and rescue, the dog selected for my depart- ment would be trained as a cadaver dog. While most Working dogs will track live subjects and find articles, it takes a special dog to find human remains. To determine which pup would be the best candidate for the job, I brought trainers from the National Search Dog Association (NSDA) to the Shore home
when the pups were six weeks old for Cadaver Aversion Testing. This test was to determine the reactions of the pups to the scent of human remains. A human patella was used as the body part in the test. The patella was placed into a jar with holes for the scent. Only the males in the litter were tested as I specifi- cally requested a male. The pups were identified by collar color and the test was videotaped. Alongside the NSDA Trainers, the Shores and I watched reac- tions and we each determined that the red collar male had the best reaction to the cadaver scent. He showed curiosity,
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