York unleashes new police partner: K9 officer will ‘look out for all of us’

There’s a new top dog in the city of York.

The York Police Department has unleashed Tigris, the agency’s new K-9 and the first four-legged officer in York in nearly a decade. She, along with her partner, Lance Cpl. Keith Johnson, has already responded to several calls and has been hitting the streets getting acquainted with residents.

Tigris is a Dutch Shepherd, which Johnson said is similar to the Belgian Malinois, a popular breed for police dogs.

“A Malinois is a very fired-up dog almost all the time,” he said. “Dutchies, as we say, have an on-off switch.”

Police dogs have various functions, Johnson explained. They can be trained to detect certain types of drugs, weapons, explosives, people or evidence items. Some are trained to do multiple kinds of tracking.

Tigris is trained to detect multiple types of drugs and can also do article searches to pick up the scent of anything from a cellphone to a spent shell casing.

“If we are searching a crime scene, we might find an old credit card or a broken cellphone,” Johnson said. “She’ll alert to that, and the detectives can determine whether it was a viable piece of evidence.”

Tigris was previously trained to track humans, Johnson said. While it’s no longer one of her primary functions, that doesn’t stop her from looking out for her partner and his fellow officers.

“She’ll look out for all of us, especially if somebody starts to make sudden movements or puts their hands on me,” he said. “She’s just a companion, a partner. She’ll do whatever any other partner would do for you.”

Johnson said he’s wanted to be a K-9 handler since entering law enforcement. His goal is to eventually have a K-9 on each shift at York police, taking police dogs from a “want” to a “must-have” for the agency.

Without K-9s, he said, officers are limited to their own sense of smell during traffic stops, and drugs like heroin or cocaine don’t have the obvious scent marijuana does. Now, a K-9 can do an “air sniff” around a vehicle, and if the dog alerts, that gives the officer probable cause to search.

Tigris and Johnson train a minimum of four hours per week. Her reward for alerting on something or finding drugs or an article: a tennis ball. Johnson holds up the ball and moves his hand around, Tigris’ eyes following every movement.

“It changes her whole demeanor,” he said.

Obtaining a police dog, and then training it, isn’t cheap. Johnson said the price tag for a basic drug dog runs around $5,000 and climbs depending on the breed of the dog, its capabilities and the agency’s desired uses for the dog.

Johnson actually purchased Tigris himself while at his previous department, according to York Police Chief Andy Robinson.

“When he was hired, he asked about the possibility of bringing her on board with him,” Robinson said. Still, even after getting and training a dog, a department needs a specially designed patrol car and equipment.

Robinson said the department used some funds from the auction of old patrol cars to purchase a used K-9 vehicle from a government auction site.

“A dog is much more effective at sniffing out drugs than a human is,” he said. “It’s just another way to make us more efficient and effective in the fight on drugs.”

Robinson and Johnson both realize the war on drugs may never be won, but they hope Tigris can help make a dent in York County, where heroin use is following a national upward trend.

“My goal is, if I can take one or two a day off the street, I might have saved the life of a young child or a young child’s father or mother – helped someone’s family,” Johnson said. “Drugs – they’re a terrible thing.”

This story was originally published November 13, 2016 at 10:44 PM with the headline "York unleashes new police partner: K9 officer will ‘look out for all of us’."