The Unified Police Department of Greater Salt Lake is fortunate to complement its array of police service dogs with two bloodhounds, named Oliver and Molly. Our bloodhounds add capability to our K9 Unit by specializing in trailing paths of human scent. These dogs are stubborn with a one-track mind to follow the paths of fleeing criminals, lost children and disoriented persons. Both Oliver (Ollie) and Molly are certified through the Canine Training Academy in Colorado. Oliver achieved the highest level of tracking dog certification when he was one year old.
The National Police Bloodhound Association is the larger of the two Police Bloodhound Associations in the Country. It operates on the east coast but recently brought some of the top instructors in the United States to Riverside, Ca. for a weeklong seminar.
With the assistance of Friends for Unified Police K9, a not-for-profit organization supported by members of our community who value the service that our dogs provide and the sacrifices that they make, the Unified Police Department was able to send Ollie and Molly to this valuable training opportunity.
Bloodhound tracking teams from Singapore, Germany and throughout the United States attended this event. The training exceeded our expectations and was especially valuable to Ollie who is a member of the Unified Police Child Abduction Response Team (CART).
Both Ollie and Molly did a great job honing their skills, but equally important was the opportunity to network with the best in the industry; exchanging ideas and making lasting contacts and opening valuable lines of communication within the Bloodhound community.
The Unified Police Department of Greater Salt Lake strives to provide its citizens with the highest level of service with our entire K9 unit. Our service dogs can do what the highest levels of scientific technology cannot compete with. Training opportunities such as this one supported by our community provide us with the foundation to provide service second to none.
Our K9 Unit wishes to thank those who have supported our organization, Friends for Unified Police K9. We also welcome future support as we work to keep these service dogs at the top of their game keeping our community much safer than we could without our four legged partners.