New dog on duty for city (2/17/05)

The Portland Police Department has a new top dog.

Roy, a 3-year-old Belgian Malinois, worked his first day as the department’s police dog Tuesday night. His handler is officer Steve Schlechty, who has been with the department for four years.

The pair finished five weeks of training at Vohne Liche Kennels located near Peru on Feb. 11. There, Roy learned how to track, search areas and buildings and detect drugs. Schlechty learned Dutch and how to command the animal in that language.

Roy’s first night on the job was eventful. Before his 11 p.m. to 7 a.m. shift began, he was called to sniff a car for drugs. He also practiced searching at the police station. He found the officer serving as a decoy quickly by tracking his scent.

The city was able to work out a trade agreement with the kennel to exchange the city’s former K-9 dog Vischa for Roy. Vischa is currently working as an explosives-sniffing dog in Iraq with handler and former Portland police K-9 officer Brad Ridenour, who resigned last October.

Schlechty said he decided to become a K-9 officer because he felt it would be a good challenge for him, and he was ready to try something different. Schlechty is a dog lover who owns a German Shepherd and a black Lab. They get along well with Roy.

“I’m really excited that I took (the K-9 program) on,” he said.

“I think he really enjoys having Roy. It’s a good opportunity for him, and I think he will really enjoy the dog program,” said Portland Police Chief Bob Sours.

Schlechty said Roy is a very obedient and friendly dog, who attacks on demand. He is also a hard worker. “His work, his drive is awesome,” Schlechty said.

“(Roy) appears to be an excellent dog,” said Sours. “He’s very obedient, and he appears to work well in all aspects of K-9 police work.

“He’s continued to impress us throughout the last six weeks that we’ve been with him,” Sours said.

Sours said Roy competed in several competitions for police dogs in Europe before he came to the kennel. He would like the animal to compete in two or three police dog competitions per year to see how he compares to other police dogs.

Portland’s former K-9 competed in the K-9 Olympics in 2003, said Sours.[[In-content Ad]]Jay County K-9 Billy is off work for about six weeks, while he is being treated for heartworms.

A heartworm test done on the Belgian Malinois in December during his routine physical tested positive for the parasite. Another test in January also was positive, Jay County police said.

Dr. Christian Bader of the Portland Veterinary Clinic, who is Billy’s veterinarian, said the animal was given his first shot of Immiticide to kill the worms on Feb. 7. He will be given another shot on March 7.

Billy has to spend three days at the clinic after each shot to restrict his activity and to make sure his body reacts well to the medication.

About three weeks after the second shot, Billy will be able to return to work. A month later, he will go back to the clinic for a check-up and will be put back on his heartworm prevention medication. Bader said he can’t give the 92-pound dog a clean bill of health until three months after his check-up because it takes a while for the body to rid itself of the dead worms.

Billy was put on this treatment plan because he is 6 years old. If he were younger, he could have received the two shots within 24 hours of each other and been off work for only about a month. Bader said administering the shots a month apart is easier on the older dogs, and it doesn’t overburden the canine’s immune system.

Bader said the reason why the animal needs to rest after his shots is to prevent a clot from forming in a blood vessel in the lungs. The heartworm medicine kills the worms, then the body’s immune system breaks them down. If Billy were active, the right ventricle in his heart could force a large number of worms into the blood stream and clog the artery. This could be fatal to the dog.

The vet added Billy had been on the heartworm preventative Sentinel — a pill he is supposed to take once a month year-round. Billy must have missed one or more of his pills last summer, said Bader.

The medication should have been administered by the dog’s handler, Patrick Wells, the vet and Sheriff Todd Penrod said. Penrod said this morning he was not aware that Billy had missed any doses.

The product is guaranteed to prevent heartworms, said Bader. In 10 years, he has never seen the product fail if it is used correctly.

The company that manufactures the heartworm prevention medication donates it to the police department. Bader said retail value for the medication for a dog Billy’s size would cost about $12 per pill. The cost of the two treatment shots, his stays at the clinic and the follow-up exam will be about $450, he said.

It can take at least six months for an animal to test positive for the disease once it has been infected.

Heartworm is only spread through mosquitos and cannot be passed from dog to dog, Bader said. The animals typically become infected during the mosquito season.

Billy seems to be doing fine and hasn’t shown any of the outward signs of the disease, which are lethargy, a dull cough and weight loss. This is good news, Bader said, adding, the dog shows no signs of heart disease.

While Billy is recuperating, Portland police dog Roy will fill in for him as needed, police said. Roy is taking the heartworm prevention medication.