Canine First Aid Training for Orange County Sheriff's Department

Dr. Timothy Concannon, emergency and critical care specialist, and surgeon Dr. Christian Osmond of California Veterinary Specialists Ontario visited the Orange County Sheriff’s Department Canine Unit to train the department in canine first aid.

The training involved 20 handlers with their dogs who completed a 5 hour course. The course included 3 hours of classroom discussion followed by 2 hours of hands on training working with the handlers and their individual dogs. Dr. Concannon and Dr. Osmond ended the training and had the dog handlers create first aid kits to keep in their cars in case of an emergency.

“The officers are genuine guys and it’s really amazing to witness the bond between them and their dogs. These working dogs really are partners to their officers. The lives of these dogs are at risk every day because of their commitment to their job. I think that it is important to the officers to know that if a tragedy occurs that they will be able to respond in a way that maximizes the chance of their dog surviving. It is clear working with these officers that they all feel a deep responsibility to care for their dogs and to keep them healthy.” Dr. Concannon explains why he enjoys training the canine unit on first aid.

We are very grateful for our police officers and their canines. Both of their lives are at risk every day as they go out to serve and protect. Thank you for all you do and keeping our community safe.