Braintree Police K9 Re-Training Focusing on Giving Handlers Better Control

A professional dog training specialist from Hanover has been employed by the to evaluate and train the patrol K9s suspended from service last month following three attacks in the past year, including one that sent a Braintree officer to the hospital.

Police Chief Paul Frazier  of the department's patrol dogs in June, but left K9 Lucky to continue serving as a drug detector. Since then, the suspended dogs and their handlers have been waiting review of the entire program.

That review, and returning the dogs to service, "will take some time," Frazier said in an email. "In addition to getting the canines evaluated and cleared to be redeployed, we will be updating our policy to make sure we have some safeguards built in to prevent a similar incident that occurred in April."

During a call to Skyline Drive in April, officer Kristine Lydon was attacked by one of the dogs. K9 Kitt "escaped" from the rear of a cruiser, ran past his handler Officer William Cushing Jr. and attacked Lydon, Frazier said in a statement last month. She was brought to Boston Medical Center and faces additional surgery in the future for her leg injury.

In a separate incident, K9 Dargo attacked his handler and was euthanized when the department found he had a genetic impairment. Another dog attacked his handler's son and was killed during the incident by the Weymouth Police.

The department selected David Ranieri, a 20-year dog training veteran and owner of Trouwe Hond K-9, to perform the evaluation, Frazier said. K9 Car and his handler Officer Tom Flannery have already been evaluated, and K9 Kitt and Officer Cushing will see the trainer starting on July 23.

"According to Mr. Ranieri, Tom and his partner can be effectively trained to bring in handler control while still maintaining an effective patrol dog," Frazier said in an email.

Ranieri will focus on the K9’s ability to tell the difference between a hostile person and a non-threat, Frazier said. He will also work on the handlers' ability to control the dogs in different scenarios, including when they need to call-off a K9.

"Our K9’s currently have limited if any 'recall' training, which means our Handlers cannot command the K9 to stop," Frazier said. "Mr. Ranieri believes through some basic obedience work this can be instilled in the K9’s."

Originally, Braintree's patrol dog training was done by Lt. Kenneth Ballinger, of the Plymouth County Sheriff's Department. A department spokesman referred questions about Braintree's previous training to Chief Frazier, who said he is continuing to look into it. Sgt. Tim Cohoon, director of the Braintree Police Working Dog Foundation, did not respond to a request for comment.