Canine officer joins Logan Police
Officer Tino, a Belgium Malinois, is the newest addition to the Logan City Police Department, and at 18 months old, he is already being put to good use.
Capt. James Geier of Logan Police said Tino and his partner, Officer Dustin Elleman, found marijuana in a car at the Smith’s parking lot Wednesday. The find resulted in two arrests, he said.
Elleman said, “I’ve been with this partner of mine for about six weeks.”
Tino and Elleman started training in Indianapolis, Ind. on Aug. 2 and returned to duty on Sept. 16. Tino is certified through the Indiana State Police and the National Narcotic Detector Dogs Association (NNDDA). He must be recertified each year, Elleman said.
Friday morning, Tino and Elleman presented themselves to a 4th grade class from Wilson Elementary School at the Smith’s parking lot. The police department held a contest to nickname Tino, and Jaime Michelle Wadsworth won.
Geier said the name Counter was chosen because “he’s kind of our ‘counter-attack’ against drugs.”
Tino is passive-aggressive, which means when he finds drugs, he just sits and stares, Elleman said. As a reward for his work, Tino gets a tennis ball.
Tino demonstrated his police dog abilities for the fourth-grade class and Elleman said jokingly, “Look how cheap he is. He works for a tennis ball.”
Police dogs don’t eat people, Elleman said to the children. They do bite some people, but it’s a small part of their job.
Geier said Tino is a dual-purpose dog. While locating drugs is one part of his job, he is also a patrol-service dog. When the police get an intrusion call, they can send Tino in to locate the intruder much more quickly, he said.
All of Tino’s commands are in Dutch since he was born and raised in Holland, Elleman said.
Mayor Doug Thompson, who was also present for the ceremonies, said getting a police dog has been talked about for 10 years, but concern for cost and the actual value of the dog slowed the process. Work with dogs borrowed from Brigham City Police proved invaluable and made the decision to buy Tino much easier, he said.
Smith’s and Milk-Bone made a $5,000 donation Friday to help buy Tino and also gave several boxes of Milk-Bone dog biscuits. Tino costs about $11,000 without added costs of veterinary bills and yearly upkeep, Thompson said.
According to an information sheet, “The Milk-Bone Police Dog donation program consists of Milk-Bone teaming up with grocery chains across the country to sponsor the purchase of new canine officers for local law enforcement agencies’ canine units. Over the past four years, Milk-Bone Police Dog programs have sponsored 147 new K-9 officers across the country.”
Chief Richard Hendricks said the new K-9 unit has generated good public and community interest, and other civic groups have already come forward looking to donate money.
Millville’s Tyler Sorensen, a Boy Scout, is doing his Eagle Scout project to help out Tino. Sorensen, a 13-year-old in Troop 375, has talked to schools about organizing assemblies to help educate students on why there is a need for a K-9 unit. He is selling 25-cent buttons with Elleman and Tino on them for a drawing. He hopes to do the drawing during a USU basketball game. Money generated from the buttons will help pay for the K-9 unit.
Geier said the police department is also trying to buy a bullet-proof vest for Tino. He will be protected as one of their own.
Elleman said Tino is owned by the City of Logan, but lives in his home to help them bond.
-GMK@cc.usu.edu
Milk-bone, a supporter of Logan´s new canine police officer, is passed around the Smith´s parking lot for children to taste. (Photo by Scott Davis)