RRPD, Sandoval Co. Sheriff take part in 3-day K-9 Unit training program

Rio Rancho police officer Brittany Ingram and her 2½-year-old K-9 German shepherd Chance went inside an abandoned movie theater in Northwest Albuquerque looking for a suspect on Feb. 28.

When they found a man lying inside a cubby, Ingram instructed him to show his hands. Otherwise, she said, “you’re going to get bit.”

Chance bit his left arm and kept his teeth on the suspect until Ingram pulled Chance’s collar. Chance let him go and was told, “Good job.”

The man in the cubby was a decoy — Santa Fe police officer Nicholas LeFleur — who was wearing a bite sleeve.

A decoy serves as a “professional chew toy” that plays multiple roles during a training; i.e., a suspect. Sometimes decoys wear a full bite suit. Other times, they wear a sleeve that serves as a “middle ground” between the suit and a real person a K-9 would see on the street, Spike School Director Casey McCrossan said.

The hypothetical situation was part of Spike’s School’s three-day course that taught K-9 teams how to be safe and effective decoys for their units. For example, students learned about bite placement and proper catch techniques. Spike also offers classes in areas such as medical emergencies, in which handlers are taught what to do if a dog gets hurt while on duty, McCrossan said.

A K-9 unit is a specialized group of law enforcement officers who use service dogs to perform the responsibilities of a general police officer.

The general duties mean that the dog accompanies his handler on traffic stops or when responding to calls or emergencies. The canine assists in apprehending suspects and in other public engagements related to law enforcement.

The K-9 unit is also responsible for carrying out more specific jobs, in which the leading role is performed by the police dog. Those tasks include detecting illegal substances and explosives, and tracking and rescuing kidnapped or missing people.

The training will enable the dogs to become better and more reliable, Sandoval County Deputy Luke Osborn said.

The course also improves communication and trust between K-9s and their handlers, McCrossan said.

“Quality training allows for better, more effective handling — helping to protect everyone involved.”

K-9 teams from the Sandoval County Sheriff’s Office, Rio Rancho Police Department, Metropolitan Detention Center, Santa Fe Police Department, U.S. Border Patrol and the U.S. Air Force attended the recent event.

The Albuquerque Police Department and Bernalillo County Sheriff’s Office also have K-9 units, though they did not participate in the course.

Osborn said to be able to attend this training is “priceless.”

He said he attended a Spike’s School course last year along with people from other law enforcement agencies and was so impressed with its professionalism, quality and high standards that “we asked them to come back.”

‘Helping protect the community better’

Spike’s School, which started in 2021, is a nonprofit organization that focuses on the care and preservation of working dogs. It has assisted more than 2,600 K-9 teams across the country.

The training course costs about $10,000, but it is free to the K-9 handlers and their police and sheriffs departments.

Along with offering courses, the school purchases bulletproof vests to keep the K-9s safe and pays for K-9s medical treatment.

“Those vests are just as important to the dogs as they are to us,” Osborn said.

The course, equipment purchases and treatment are covered by the Spikes K9 Fund, which was founded in 2014 by James Hatch, a retired naval special warfare operator who dedicated his life to the working dogs after one saved his life during his last deployment.

“Our Spike’s School campaign was created to address the growing need within the K-9 community for high-quality training that didn’t place a financial burden on handlers or their departments,” McCrossan said. “We believe every K-9 handler should have access to the quality training necessary to perform safely on the job.”

McCrossan, who has been with the organization for about 10 years, said she loves being a part of the organization because “you get to help these dogs and you get to see some really cool stuff.”

“But the greatest thing is knowing you are making an investment in each community,” she said. “By helping these dogs, you’re helping protect the community better. There’s nothing like it.”

For law enforcement personnel like deputy Osborn, K-9s are more than just work partners with which to help keep places safe.

“I eat and breathe K-9 daily,” Osborn said.

He and 5-year-old German shepherd Udo have been a team for five years. They live at home together, vacation together.

“He’s a part of my family.”