Police K-9 Sage celebrates one year

One year ago, a new face appeared around campus — Sage, Utah State University’s first critical incident and crisis response K-9.

Sage’s handler Officer Shane Nebeker said the past year has been extremely positive.

“It’s been absolutely one of the best experiences I’ve had as a police officer over my time,” Nebeker said.

Nebeker says that when eight-week-old Sage first arrived at USU, she had zero training.

“We started training with her probably around the second week or third week of November last year, starting with the base puppy basics,” Nebeker said. “Then through the last year, we’ve come up with a plan to keep her personality while dialing her into what we want her to do.”

As a critical incident and crisis response K-9, Sage’s job is to work with people and support those who need it. This encompasses both bringing joy around campus and supporting witnesses to crime or trauma survivors.

The presence of a friendly dog like Sage during difficult moments helps to de-escalate situations and offers emotional support in a way that human responders often cannot.

“Now that we’ve got her where we wanted to be socially and obedience-wise, we want to start putting her in circumstances where we can leave her one-on-one with an investigator, a victim’s advocate or a therapist,” Nebeker said.

The white English Labrador retriever has become a familiar, comforting presence on campus, where she supports students and staff and promotes emotional well-being.

Student Advocate VP Sydney Lyman has experienced this firsthand.

“I had a particularly hard day a few winters ago, and I was walking from one class to another and saw Sage,” Lyman said. “Her presence immediately lightened my mood, and having that break without feeling rushed or stressed made my day.”

Nebeker brings Sage to university and community events where she interacts with students faculty and staff.

“We’ve had her at football games, student events, presentations, orientations and connections, classes,” Nebeker said. “Just as many environments as I can put her in.”

This effort to be present has cemented Sage as a USU staple and improved the relationship between the USU Police Department and the student body.

“I think having Sage as such a core part of the USU police force makes them more approachable to students,” Lyman said. “I think it’s pretty wonderful that she magnifies their caring, compassionate, hard-working mentality.”

Nebeker has seen the same thing in his interactions with students.

“I do believe that she’s helped build some bridges and made us as a police department a little bit more approachable,” Nebeker said. “I hope the things she does can affect the interactions that people are going to have with other police officers.”

A typical day for Sage consists of going on patrol with Nebeker, whatever that may entail.

“She rides around with me, and if there’s an opportunity to take her into a scene after things calm down a little bit, then I’ll usually try to take that opportunity,” Nebeker said. “If we’re not on patrol or on-call somewhere I’m usually walking around with her somewhere.”

Some of Sage’s favorite spots include the Quad and the TSC.

“She likes the Quad because there are squirrels,” Nebeker said. “In the TSC, she knows there are certain offices like the Student Affairs office that have treats.”

Sage and Nebeker try to show up for the campus community in whatever way they can. Recently, they participated in Politics, Puppies and Pretzels as a part of Aggies Vote Week.

“I was struggling to find dogs to come,”  Lyman said. “After one phone call to the USU Police Department,  Sage and her handler made sure they would be there, and she was one of the stars at that event.”

During her downtime, Sage enjoys chasing squirrels, playing and camping with her family.

“This is hard work for her,” Nebeker said. “When she’s home, I’m very careful to make sure that she gets her time and gets to play.”

Sage’s work in the past year has spurred talk of expanding the USU police’s K-9 program and created potential interest from other law enforcement offices.

“I suspect we may have another one here in the next few years that can work with her,” Nebeker said. “My hope is I can build a network to train with other officers doing something similar.”

Whatever the future holds, Sage and Nebeker will continue to foster strong relationships and impact the campus community.

“If you see her, say hi,” Lyman said. “Sage and her handler are national treasures.”