Residents Invited To Graduation Of Sheriff's K9 Recruits

CLEARWATER, FL – The Pinellas County Sheriff’s Office is going to the dogs – at least for a few hours. At 6 p.m., Tuesday, March 13, the sheriff’s office will host a graduation ceremony to welcome the newest members of its K9 unit.

The public is invited to attend the graduation ceremony at the Countryside High School football field, 3000 State Road 580, Clearwater.

The new members of the K9 unit and their handlers are ready to hit the streets after completing four months of training with instructor Deputy Matt Aitken at the Pinellas County Sheriff's Office K-9 Compound, 3410 118th Avenue in Pinellas Park.

The graduates are K9 Guinness and handler Cpl. Paul Martin, K9 Devon and Deputy Wyeth Whitehurst, and K9 Tyson and Deputy Johnathan Harr.

After receiving their graduation certificates, the new members of the K9 unit will demonstrate the skills they acquired including obedience commands, bite work, search work outdoors and in buildings, tracking and human odor response.

After being on the road and patrolling the streets with their partners, some members of the K9 unit will be given the opportunity to continue their training in narcotic and explosive detection.

Images via Pinellas County Sheriff’s Office

Photo 1: Guinness and Martin

Photo 2: Tyson and Harr

Photo 3: Devon and Whitehurst