Police Service dogs need vacations too. Officials say downtime is important for the thirteen police service dogs that work in the state.
Highway Patrol Service Dog Unit Supervisor Lieutenant Scott Sheldon says the dogs work hard while on duty.
“We do have a lot of time built-in with the dog’s regular training so that they can have some fun too because if we just keep pushing and pushing and not have them have any down time or any free time – you know they’re kind of like humans, with long stretches of work in between stretches of play, it’s just not a whole lot of fun,” says Sheldon.
Sheldon says in addition to the built-in downtime, many of the police service dogs take vacations with their handlers and their families. He says of the thirteen dogs working with South Dakota law enforcement, twelve are narcotic detectors, one sniffs out explosives, and three do patrol work – tracking and apprehending criminals.
Visit the South Dakota Highway Patrol Facebook page to see photos.