The St. Petersburg Police Department increased its complement be three today.
Specifically, three K9s became the newest members of the force, following their Graduation Day.
- Dogs, trainers completed more than a year of training
- Trained in detecting narcotics, bombs, handling domestic situations
- Total number of K9 officers in St. Pete PD now 11
These dogs and their trainers completed more than a year of training leading up to this day. Assistant police chief James Previtera said they're coming on board not a moment too soon.
"These are three more dogs added to the streets," said Previtera, "We're gonna lose a dog next week, so it's a constant where we're trying to keep our numbers up."
The K9s are trained in detecting narcotics, bombs and even in handling domestic situations.
Previtera said these K9 officers are vital to policing.
"There's something about a dangerous situation, when that K-9 truck rolls on and you see that dog come out of the truck, even for guys like me that've been doing this for 30 years, you definitely feel better when you see that dog with us," said Previtera.
The three new K9s bring the total number of St. Petersburg Police dogs to 11.