Police officers and canine partners make good use of buildings

Date: 9/5/2014

WEST SPRINGFIELD – Donn is easy – and eager – to please when West Springfield Officer Mark Cote leashes him up for his routine canine exercises on The Hillside at Providence campus.

Donn, a Dutch Shepherd, appears friendly at first glance as he bounds up the hill but when he is released to find a “decoy” in hiding, his instincts – and training – kicks in and he knows he has a job to do. Once he finds the decoy he receives a reward – the protective sleeve worn by the “intruder” – and carries it away from the scene of the “crime.”
   
“As good neighbors, we responded positively to the West Springfield Police Department’s K-9 program’s request to utilize our buildings for canine training exercises,” Sister Kathleen Popko, President of the Sisters of Providence, said. “This one-time event evolved into regular monthly training.”
   
The Hillside at Providence campus, 2112 Riverdale St. already houses not only MercyLIFE, a program of all inclusive care of the elderly, but also the administrative offices of Mercy Home Care, Mercy Hospice and Mercy Companions.
   
Popko explained that the vacant buildings the officers are currently using will be developed with “affordable, elderly housing that includes both new construction and remodeling of the existing buildings.”
   
Cote, 22 years on the force, has been a dog handler for 12 years and relishes the time he spends training the canines. On a recent Tuesday afternoon, Cote and officers from several towns including Ludlow, Palmer, Wilbraham, Amherst and Sturbridge honed their skills, along with their canine assistants.
   
“We use the grounds for tracking, as well as for searches in buildings,” Cote said. “The use of this property makes it realistic for the dogs.”
   
Sturbridge officer Dan Hemingway volunteered to be a decoy during a training exercise so Donn could showcase his skills.
   
“We encourage aggression by the dogs,” Hemingway said, adding that Donn had a “solid bite” on the barrel sleeve he was wearing. “You feel the pressure even with the sleeve on.”
   
All officers onsite are members of the Massachusetts Police Work Dog Association whose mission is to enhance the training, education and working ability of police canine teams.
   
Additionally, the association is committed to improving public relations within the community and promoting networking among the teams. The local officers use the North American Police Work Dog Association standards when training, according to Cote.
   
Donn is an integral part of West Side’s police force.
   
“Donn is another tool in our pocket, a nonlethal alternate to use,” Cote said. Donn can search an area in a quarter of the time that officers can.
   
Donn is joined on the force by Pike, a 13-month-old black Labrador. Pike’s handler is Officer Eric Johnson.
   
“Pike is specially trained for narcotics detection but [began] his important role on Aug. 27, as an ice breaker between students when he visits all local schools on a regular basis,” Johnson said.
   
Johnson and Pike are embarking on a new journey this fall, a full-time role interacting with school faculty and students at all grade levels.
   
“The program this year will be a work in progress,” Johnson said. The visits will center more time at the middle school level.
   
Cote noted that with assistance from Donn and Pike, local officers, as well as the Massachusetts State Police, U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation, have captured $1.1 million in drug seizures.
   
For the dogs to be successful in their roles, ongoing training with the officers is conducted several times during the month at a variety of sites across the region.
   
“Constant training allows for the upkeep of dog maintenance as well as for training records,” Cote said.
   
For Donn and Pike, they go the distance for their handlers – and are rewarded at the end of each mission for a job well done.
   
“We rely on each other,” Cote, said. “We are a support system for each other.”