Police Dogs To Show Off Skills At Murrieta's First K-9 Trial

MURRIETA, CA — The Murrieta Police Department will be hosting their first Law Enforcement/Military K-9 Trials. The event will feature Law Enforcement and Military K-9 units from throughout Southern California. Events on Friday, April 6 will include explosives and narcotics detection as well as evidence search. Friday's events will be CLOSED to the public.

On Saturday, April 7, the event will be OPEN to the public.

The event will run from 10 a.m. - 4 p.m. The public will be invited to observe the K-9 teams participate in several events. Teams will compete in both obedience and agility courses. Both courses are designed to test and showcase the teamwork between the K9's and their human partners. Teams will compete in area and building searches where the K9's superior olfactory senses will be put to the test as they attempt to locate people who are hidden in various location. The final event of the day will be the patrol work portion. During that event teams will navigate several real life scenarios in which they must deploy their K9 to apprehend decoys in bite suits.

On Saturday April 7, during the event, there will be a Public Safety Fair to include the MPD SWAT, MPD Fire Department, Child I.D. Kits, Food Vendor, Kids Activities and local Vendors on site for shopping. With free admission and free parking, this is a "not to be missed" family friendly event that supports local businesses.

The Murrieta Police Department K-9 Unit currently consists of five K-9 teams. Cpl Elliott with K9 Kazan, a German Shepherd; Ofc Hollenweger with K9 Rocky, a Belgian Malinois; Ofc Harwick with K9 Buck, a Belgian Malinois; Ofc Huss with K9 Pak, a Belgian Malinois & Ofc Martin with K9 Duke, a Bloodhound.

Law Enforcement K-9's play an important role for Police Departments. K9's are a proven law enforcement tool that have the potential to save departments time and resources. A proficient team can save a department between 800-1200 man hours per year. K9's keen sense of smell coupled with their speed and agility can locate people or objects, in less time than officers. In high risk situations, K9's can apprehend a suspect without personal injury or risk to officers or civilians. Having a K9 onscene, visible and available for deployment, frequently de-escalates a situation and leads to the peaceful apprehension of a suspect.

We encourage everyone to come out and watch K9 teams from across Southern California compete for Top Dog honors on Saturday April 7, 2018 from 10am - 4pm.

All profits from this event go to the Paws4Law Foundation. Paws4Law is a local 501c3 non-profit dedicated to raising community awareness and support for the Murrieta Police Department K9 Unit. Paws4Law Foundation is completely independent of the Murrieta Police Department and the City of Murrieta. Most notably they work with the handlers of retired K9's to make sure they get the medical treatment/surgeries they need and deserve after a life of serving their community. They are working long term to help acquire property and build a K9 training facility in Murrieta.

For more information on the event, please contact Cpl Elliott at 951-538-0053 or Ofc Harwick at 619-846-3334 or MPDK9@MurrietaCa.Gov.

— INFORMATION VIA: Murrieta Police Department / PHOTO: K9 Buck is pictured during his training in 2016. Credit: Murrieta PD