Police K-9 Unit, Extra Protection

My focus in this blog is to illustrate how faith and life intersect in usual and unusual ways. Sometimes God is mentioned and the illustration of faith is overt. And sometimes you have to look a little bit, such as in the piece below. Think about God the protector.

These two events occurred some years ago, during my journalism days, but the photos are current, courtesy of the Lenexa Police Department.

 Police K-9 officers are really dogged about their jobs. As a newspaper journalist, I did a couple of ride-alongs, once with Officer Dan and his Belgian Malinois, Reza, who was trained in narcotics detection. Reza kind of did a scratch and sniff method, and had recently found more than 200 pounds of marijuana in a pickup truck. Her reward - play time with her favorite toy, a piece of plastic PVC pipe.

Another evening I did a ride-along with Officer Phil and his assistant – a German shepherd named Woody. Woody was something. He didn’t wear the typical police uniform, but he wore the attitude of protecting those he was assigned to protect. His loyalty was his badge. His bite was his weapon.   

K-Nine Officer with Belgian Malinois
Photo courtesy of Lenexa KS Police Department


On this particular evening, I was in the front passenger seat of a squad car driven by Officer Phil. In the back seat, separated from us by a Plexiglas shield, was Woody. The car reeked of dog. Wet dog fur. Dog slobber. And an impossible-to-describe smell of dog excitement. Woody loves to go to work, according to Officer Phil. 

We headed out on the interstate, Woody poking his nose through the opening in the Plexiglas shield, paws resting on the front seat. Officer Phil wanted to show me what happens when a motorist is pulled over for an infraction, and a K-9 officer is part of the mix. It took only moments to spot an erratic driver speeding across lanes. The siren and lights went on, the driver and our car pulled over, and Woody was panting with what I can only describe as job lust.

Before Officer Phil got out of the car, he made sure the passenger window was open. He had explained to me that Woody was trained to watch body language, and if he detected any sort of threatening gesture towards Officer Phil, he would be out of the car like a shot to “contain the threat.” That’s K-9 unit-speak for taking a big walloping bite. And here’s a sobering thought - the judgment call is Woody’s.

I was to remain in the car during the stop. Officer Phil told me not to speak to Woody because he would be absolutely focused on his job. I have to confess here that as soon as Officer Phil got out of the car, I turned slightly in my seat and whispered, “Hi doggie.” My greeting was met by a deep and very serious sounding growl, even as Woody kept his eyes trained on his fellow officer.

The stop only took a few minutes, and thankfully, the driver made no gestures that could be perceived as a threat, Officer Phil got back in the car, and Woody did what I suppose was a happy pant, a job-well-done pant, as he added another layer of slobber to the Plexiglas. And the ride continued.



Dogs on the outside are Belgian Malinois. Center dog is a Dutch Shepherd.
Photo courtesy of Lenexa KS Police Department

 We have several police officers in our congregation. I have great respect for the work they do, the service they provide their communities. Keep watching this spot – I hope to share their stories one of these days. In the meantime, ponder this: God has your back.