 "Photo: Keith Toffling")
 "Photo: Keith Toffling")
It may seem a somewhat uncommon resource for a typical university police department, but a K-9 unit provides the campus community with increased safety while providing officers with an invaluable crime-fighting partner.
UMPD's K-9 unit, which consists of three officers and their canine counterparts, patrols the University of Massachusetts campus 24 hours a day and has been active since 2003.
"One of the intents behind starting the K-9 unit was to give us a new tool to reach out to the community and have something … that people would be interested meeting … instead of just an officer driving by in a cruiser with the windows up," Officer Gerry Perkins said. "Creating a focal point for dialogue with the community was one of the big things."
Each canine in the unit has its own defining characteristics, from breed and age to skill and, possibly most noticeably, personality.
Every shift, the dogs are ready and eager to perform tasks like narcotics detection, suspect or scent tracking, aggressive active alert and officer protection in potentially hostile situations.
Max, the first canine officer at UMPD, can most often be seen patrolling the Mullins Center and acting as "spokes-dog" at informational events. Other than his work, the Belgian Malinois Dutch Shepherd mix and his handler, Perkins, have attained near-celebrity status by appearing in a popular YouTube video showcasing his performance in the Southwest residential area on the night of Superbowl XLII.
Kayla, an 8-year-old Chocolate Labrador who specializes in passive tracking, detecting and recovering narcotics, firearms and explosives, works side by side with officer Dameon Dewolf.
Lastly, Zeke, a 4-year-old Belgian Malinois handled by Officer Liana Varoksy, was imported from Holland and is trained to perform duties such as narcotics detection, evidence recovery, tracking, and handler protection.
According to the handlers, they were most impressed by the dogs' sense of smell and persistence when faced with a challenge.
When searching for narcotics or scent tracking the dogs enter a state of cardiovascular overdrive, forcing them into a hyperventilated state. This stimulated physiological state potentially allows their sense of smell to partially fail them. This is where the officer's role comes into play. By paying precise attention to the dog's breathing pattern and noticing if they may have not picked up on a substance due to excessive exhaling, the officer is able to help guide the dog.
And though they may sometimes miss a targeted scent, these dogs still have the ability to detect a smells 10 times more efficiently than humans.
"The dogs' ability to alert when incredibly small quantities [of narcotics] are present with their nose which can seem almost mind-blowing at times," Perkins said.
Every day, the dogs and their handlers, in both training and active duty, put their best paw forward to help maintain a safe environment for the entire campus community.
Keith Toffling can be reached at KTofflin@student.umass.edu.
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