SNIFFING OUT CRIME T
BY MARJOLEIN LLOYD
welve years ago, Constable Reg Sahay joined the RCMP, not knowing that in a few short years, he would be a member of a very elite RCMP team. In 2007, after 20 intense weeks, Constable Sahay graduated from the Police Dog Training Service Centre in Innisfail, Alberta. He and his new partner Zod, a specially trained German shepherd, are members of one of four dog teams in the Kelowna area, with Zod being the only dog in the Okanagan trained to detect bombs (there is another in Kamloops). Sahay and Zod provide these specialized services throughout the central Okanagan, but are on general duty at YLW and throughout Kelowna and West Kelowna.
The RCMP Dog Section started in 1935, following the purchase of three dogs, Dale of Cawsalta, Black Lux and Sultan. In 1937, the RCMP established its first training program for dogs and, at first, a wide variety of breeds were used. Today, the RCMP selects only German shepherds, the majority of which come from their own breeding program. But
it’s a long road for both the pup and its potential handler.
Once Sahay decided that he wanted to apply for a dog handler position, he began an apprenticeship type program, known as quarrying. It is a long process that can take up to six years to complete and includes raising pups for a year at a time and volunteering on your days off to work with a current dog handler. Once accepted into the training program, Sahay was paired with Zod, and since then the two are inseparable. Sahay was first positioned in Fort McMurray before being transferred to Kelowna in December of last year.
As a member of the Dog Section, Sahay and Zod are called to many of the serious crimes in the city. Zod is a general duty dog and is able to assist in tracking, criminal apprehension and searching for missing persons and evidence as small as a dime in a big field. While the other three dogs in the city are able to track narcotics, Zod is the only bomb-detecting dog. He and Sahay are tested annually in their skills to ensure that they are fit for duty. The test is a three day evaluation certifying that
the dog and his handler are proficient in targeted searches for bomb locations such as; airplanes, baggage, terminals, cargo, vehicles, open compounds and hotel rooms.
Zod is able to detect 21 different types of explosives, as was demonstrated by Sahay and his partner at YLW. Using real samples, Sahay hid three “scents” in the airport terminal, before he retrieved Zod. As soon as he entered the building the dog went straight to work, and quickly found the first sample, sat down patiently and waited for his reward. Guided by Sahay, Zod continued to strategically work his way up and down the aisles, checking the floor signs and poles top and bottom and again sat down next to the second sample. To demonstrate how Zod works around people, able to ignore his surroundings
10 | YLW CONNECTION
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