060611 (Web Version) Wooster K9 unit takes Top Dog award
By Sharon Haught
May 27, 2011
857
Summary: A K9 unit from the Wooster City Police Department has taken home the title Top Dog from the Akron Police Departments Lock 3 K9 Challenge.
For the past eight years Patrolman Brian Waddell of the Wooster City Police Department and his K9 partner Quinto have been inseparable.
Since becoming a team in 2004, the pair has been together 24/7/365 honing the specialized skills they need to be a top K9 unit.
All that dedication and commitment paid off when Waddell and Quinto traveled to Akron on May 21 to compete in the Akron Police Departments Lock 3 K9 Challenge.
After a grueling day of competition that included a series of challenges designed to test the skills of dog and handler alike, Waddell and Quinto emerged with the title Top Dog.
In all 17 K9 teams from throughout the area were invited to complete in an array of events to test the dogs obedience, agility and criminal apprehension capabilities.
In addition to evaluating each dogs criminal apprehension abilities, the demanding agility portion of the competition put the physical capabilities of both the dogs and their handlers to the test.
During this portion of the competition the teams were required to navigate a challenging obstacle course that required the dogs to jump a series of four foot tall walls, walk a two foot wide catwalk, crawl under a tarp two feet above the ground and make their way through a serpentine course.
During the obedience portion of the testing the dogs were evaluated on their ability to heel and keep a steady pace with their handlers as they made their way through a set course.
To test the dogs ability to focus on the instructions given to them by their handlers, each dog was also required to maintain a down stay position for one minute as the handler moved 50 yards away.
After completing this requirement the evaluators then instructed the handlers to recall the dog. Half way through that process the judges directed the handlers to put the dog back in the down stay position before allowing the handler to fully recall the dog.
With 16 other K9s and hundreds of spectators, many of whom brought their own dogs to view the competition, maintaining the focus necessary to successfully complete the challenges despite all the distractions is a testament to the extensive training the teams undertake.
According to incoming Police Chief Matt Fisher, who most recently headed the four team Wooster K9 unit, of all the skills the dogs learn as part of their training obedience skills are the most important.
Obedience is something that you use every single day in every aspect of your work whether its drug work, tracking or apprehension, said Fisher adding obedience is the foundation everything else is built on so thats something that every police K9 has to be very proficient at.
According to Waddell, like all of the dogs in Woosters K9 units, Quinto is a dual purpose dog who is trained to detect the odor of narcotics, evidence recovery, tracking, building searches, area searches, apprehension work and handler protection work.
Fisher sees the departments K9s as a valuable tool for the department.
Given the wide ranging skills sets they have the dogs are almost a force multiplier as well noted Waddell.
For Fisher, having a Wooster K9 team win the Akron competition is a testament to Brian and the time and effort hes put in over the years and a good validation of the program that we have and the effectiveness of the local training group in which Woosters team participate.
It goes to show the level of commitment and dedication that Brian has towards being a K9 officer, said Police Chief Steve Glick.
All of our dogs are top notch and the fact that we got one that won Top Dog is just icing on the cake, said Glick adding I think the citizens should be very comfortable with the level of training and skills that our K9 officers have.
Waddell, who joined the department in 1999 and is also a member of the SWAT team and department honor guard, is looking forward to spending another two years with his K9 partner before Quinto retires.
To run a dog, in my opinion, is the best job in the police department. Its one that I cherish - I take pride in, said Waddell.
Essentially its a labor of love. You have to love what you do. Working with these dogs - I love it, said Waddell.
