Training and Handling
Together, the dog and his handler make up a K-9 unit. Law enforcement dogs are the best of the best, and their handlers are, too. Only the most dedicated officers are considered for K-9 units. A K-9 officer often puts in 60 hours each week so he or she must be energetic and physically fit. A K-9 officer must also be committed to the job; a dog's career usually lasts about six years, and the handler is in it for the long haul. The dogs live with their partners. A K-9 unit is a team that stays together 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

Photo courtesy Eden Consulting Group K9 handlers at the Eden Consulting Group training facility teach a dog to use his handler's back to scale a fence.

All law enforcement dogs have to master basic obedience training. They must obey the commands of their handler without hesitation. The dog also has to complete endurance and agility training. Jumping over walls and climbing stairs are a big part of the job. And, each dog receives specialty training -- depending on which division of law enforcement the dog works for -- he might be trained to search for drugs, bombs and even guns or trained to track missing persons or even suspects.

Photo courtesy Eden Consulting Group Police officers must learn to respond to situations with speed and precision. Here a K9 SWAT unit is training in full tactical gear.

The specialty training is tough, but it's also fun. When a dog is sniffing out drugs or a bomb, what they're actually looking for is their favorite toy! That's because their training has led them to associate that toy with a certain smell. The toy used most often is a white towel. To begin the training, the handler simply plays tug-of-war with the dog using the towel, which has been carefully washed so that it has no scent of its own. Later, a bag of marijuana is rolled up inside the towel. After playing for a while, the dog starts to recognize the smell of marijuana as the smell of his favorite toy. The handler then hides the towel, with the drugs, in various places. Whenever the dog sniffs out the drugs, he digs and scratches, trying to get at his toy. He soon comes to learn that if he sniffs out the smell of drugs, as soon as he finds them he'll be rewarded with a game of tug-of-war.

Photo courtesy Eden Consulting Group During tactical obedience training, this K9 unit is learning how to make a cautious approach.

As training progresses, different drugs are placed in the towel, until the dog is able to sniff out a variety of illegal substances. The same method is used for bomb-detection dogs, except various chemicals used to make explosives are placed in the towel instead.

Most police dogs, many other law enforcement dogs and search-and-rescue dogs are cross-trained, so they can track people too. They learn to scent on the ground, for the scent trail that a person leaves, and in the air, for the scent "cone" that flows downwind from a person when he or she is nearby.