Sprechen Sie Deutsch? Officers Meet New Canine Unit

Yuk was nervous. But who could blame him?

A lean, 3-year-old German shepherd, Yuk had just spent more than two hours caged in the back of a van journeying from Riverside to San Diego. A day earlier, the specially trained police dog had endured a grueling plane ride from his native West Germany to California.

And now, in the gusty courtyard at San Diego police headquarters, Yuk was required to remain leashed and pose for television cameras and inquiring reporters. Barking, growling and straining at his leather leash, Yuk looked like he’d had about enough.

“This is all a bit strange for him, but at least we know he’s alert,” said Officer Bob Clanton, Yuk’s handler and appointed partner on the San Diego police force, as he stroked the fractious dog’s flank. “I like his energy. We took to each other right away.”

Handpicked in Germany

Yuk is a member of the department’s new 14-dog canine unit. The animals, handpicked from various kennels throughout West Germany, were united with their human partners during a “get acquainted” session in Riverside Sunday morning and arrived here in mid-afternoon. Officers and dogs will begin training next week and are scheduled to hit the streets in specially equipped squad cars a month later.

Among those on hand to greet the new members of the force was Police Chief Bill Kolender. Standing a safe distance from the animals and occasionally eyeing them warily, Kolender said their addition to the department will “enhance the effectiveness of building and open area searches” and will “provide an officer with protection while making an arrest.”

Kolender said two of the animals will be placed in each of the department’s seven area stations and estimated the total cost of the program--including the dogs, which run $2,500 apiece--at $87,000.

But because they “require no retirement package, no health benefits and no salary,” the animals will actually save the department $56,000 per squad car per year, according to Sgt. Tom Payne, coordinator of the canine program. “The German shepherd’s presence eliminates the need for a human partner in the patrol car,” Payne explained, “so there’s significant savings.”

Payne said the animals--all males, because it’s touchy mixing the sexes--are the first dogs ever used by San Diego police. The San Diego County Sheriff’s Department has 18 canines on patrol in a program started more than 20 years ago.

The dogs, which average two and a half years old, are specially trained schutzhund --or “protection dog”--German shepherds. Theoretically, they respond only to German commands, and officers are required to learn 15 words in the foreign language, words like sit, lay, run and stay. The animals not only work with the officers but will live at their homes as well.

That suits Officer Rich Parrella just fine.

“I’ve already got a Golden Retriever at home, and most of us got into this detail because we love dogs,” said Parrella, his imported pal, Zerk, relaxing at his feet. “Zerk the Turk and I are already friends. He’s mellow and laid-back like me.”

Matching Profiles The dogs were selected and purchased for the department by Adlerhorst Kennels in Riverside, which specializes in importing and training the schutzhund dogs. Each partnership was arranged based on a personality profile provided by each officer.

“They asked us things like marital status, length of time on the force, hobbies,” said Clanton, currying Yuk in an apparently fruitless effort to quiet him.

Payne then wrote a brief description of each officer’s personality: Was he aggressive, soft-spoken, gregarious?

Armed with that data, an Adlerhorst Kennels representative traveled to West Germany and selected an appropriate animal for each officer.

“From what we can tell, the matchups are working out great,” Payne said. “The next few days the guys will just get to know the dogs, play with them and take it easy. Before you know it, the dog will actually adopt the personality of the officer.”

A dog may be man’s best friend, but won’t patroling without a human partner be a bit lonely?

“Are you kidding?” Clanton said. “This guy would give his life for me. There’s an incredible bond that will develop between us.”

More than 60 officers applied for the unit’s 14 positions, which required a two-and-a-half year investment in the program, a dedication to the unit and a proven ability to get along well with the public and with animals, Payne said.