In recognition of National Dog Day, which is being celebrated across the country on August 26, the Ocala Police Department is spotlighting its five canines.
The Ocala Police Department’s K-9 Unit includes K-9s Cheney, Dante, Diesel, Graham, and Marshal. According to OPD, four of the canines are dual-purpose patrol dogs and the fifth one is a single-purpose narcotics dog.
The dual-purpose K-9s are trained in apprehension and narcotics detection. In addition, they are able to track individuals and search for items, such as a firearm that was tossed by a fleeing suspect. K-9 Cheney is also a certified cadaver detection dog and occasionally lends a paw to other Florida law enforcement agencies for human-remains searches.
K-9 Dante is OPD’s only single-purpose narcotics detection dog and is assigned to the Unified Drug Enforcement Strike Team (UDEST). According to OPD, Dante focuses on parcel sniffs and has been instrumental in recovering large quantities of drugs.
Last year, the K-9 Unit assisted with 34 tracks and 259 drug sniffs. There were 46 suspects who were captured by K-9s with only two apprehension bites. The K-9 Unit also helped take 36 firearms off the streets in 2021.
In a social media post celebrating National Dog Day, the Ocala Police Department stated, “The use of K-9s has proven to be a valuable asset to our law enforcement agency and the community we serve.”