A new officer has joined the ranks at the Carter County Sheriff’s Office and he is ready to take a bite out of crime.
On Monday, Carter County Sheriff Dexter Lunceford announced the addition of a second K-9 officer to his department.
On Dec. 28, 2016, K-9 Spike, a Belgian Malinois, and his handler, CCSO Sgt. Nick Andes, completed seven weeks of training at a special facility in Canton, Ohio.
This addition now gives the Sheriff’s Office two K-9 units within the department.
“They will be used for tracking, search and rescue, and to combat the illicit drug trade in our county,” Lunceford said.
In September 2016 K-9 Zeke joined the department after he and his handler, Deputy Robert Hughes, completed their training, which also took place in Ohio.
The Sheriff’s Office was able to purchase Zeke thanks to a donation from the Norris-LaPorte Law Firm, which donated 100 percent of the purchase price for the K-9. Lunceford said his department was able to purchase Spike using funds from within the department.
“We purchased it with funds we pulled from other places within our budget,” Lunceford said.
In announcing the addition of Spike, Lunceford noted that both of the K-9 dogs are “passive alert” trained.
“This means they sit when alerted rather than barking and scratching,” Lunceford said. “This will allow us to use them in more public forums, such as our 15 county schools.”