DRUG DOG DILEMMA CAN BE EASILY FIXED

Our story last week about the dilemma two area agencies face now that they
each have dope sniffing dogs with no trained officers at the other end of
the leashes serves as an expensive lesson.

Of course you know who will be picking up the tab. The trouble is that
these dynamic drug detecting duos work as a team, and you just can't run in
a replacement any time you like.

Drug dogs and drug dog handlers train together and then live together.
These dogs are very expensive and the training costs are very high. Small
police agencies just can't afford a lot of changeover, at either end of the
leash.

Now we have drug detecting dogs at the Big Sandy Regional Detention Center
and in the Paintsville Police Department whose handlers have found work
elsewhere. The agencies must decide to either pay for new officers to be
trained or sell the dogs to agencies who have the funds to cover the high
costs. Odds are that both the jail and PPD will opt for plan B.

We have an alternative suggestion. There is certainly still a need for a
dope sniffing canine at the jail and in the PPD's jurisdiction, which
happen to overlap. So, why not transfer one dog (the youngest or the best)
to the Johnson County Sheriff's Department and then use the proceeds from
the sale of the other canine to pay for the training of a handler? That way
we get a dog, who can work at the jail, in the city, the county or with any
other agency in need. Whoever the sheriff assigns the dog to as canine
officer should be required to sign an agreement, before he or she is
trained, to stay on the job for a minimum length of time or reimburse the
department for some of the cost of the training. Everybody wins, including
the taxpayers. Fair enough?