K-9 officers vital part of local departments

By Lilly Adkins
BSN Associate Editor

LOUISA — The Lawrence County Sheriff’s Office now has its Paw Patrol up and running, with two new K-9 officers, Dino and Asco, on the force. Sheriff Chuck Jackson is the handler for Dino and Deputy Chase Kirk is the handler for Asco. Dino is a black Dutch Shepherd that came from Battle Ridge K-9 in Madison, W.Va., in May 2019. Asco is an East German Shepherd that came from King Southern Kennel in September 2019.
Both dogs were donated to the sheriff’s office. The city of Louisa has had its dog since August 2015, and it was purchased at a cost of $4,500 from Tactical K-9 Detection in Louisville. The K-9 was paid for with money seized through drug arrests, according to Louisa Police Chief Greg Fugitt. “Kenya is a seven-year-old male German Shepherd,” Fugitt said. “He is a narcotics detection dog and Sgt. Steven Wilburn is his handler.” All three dogs work together with the Drug Interdiction Cooperative Enforcement (D.I.C.E.) program and are trained for the single purpose of finding narcotics. “The dogs are trained to search for meth, cocaine, marijuana and heroin,” Jackson said. “We also have accidental exposure kits for the K-9s, should we require them.” Jackson said that the dogs are used for demonstrations through the impact program as well as during D.I.C.E. busts, where they have had a lot of success. In the future, he and the police department, working together, plan to do prevention assemblies at school. “Right now, I work with Dino, but in the beginning I worked with both dogs until Chase got in his training at the academy,” Jackson said. “He showed interest in handling and suitability for the job so when he got out of the academy, he still had an interest and obtained his certification through Blue Grass K-9. I’ll continue to handle Dino until a suitable handler can be certified.” Jackson handled the previous sheriff’s K-9, Leah, and continues to maintain current certification to handle the animals. Organizations interested in a demonstration, such as Boy Scouts, Girl Scouts, churches and others, can contact Jackson at the sheriff’s office at (606) 638-4368.