Pubdate: Mon, 09 Oct 2006
Source: Richmond Register (KY)
Copyright: 2006 Community Newspaper Holdings, Inc.
Contact:  http://www.richmondregister.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/4305
Author: Kelly Foreman

NOT YOUR AVERAGE DOG

New K9 Team Joins Richmond PD

RICHMOND -- Slobber flew from Bari's jowls as he raced through the 
warm grass Friday and sunk his teeth into his favorite toy.

A drool-soaked tennis ball.

His 80 pounds of fur and muscle slid into his handler just long 
enough to get to his paws again and chase another ball across Irvine 
McDowell Park.

"That's what he works for," said Richmond Police K-9 Handler Kurtis 
Heatherton. "That's his paycheck."

But don't let the playful demeanor fool you, RPD K-9 Bari's mission 
to protect and serve is not something he takes lightly.

The year-and-10-month-old red-sable German Shepherd joined the 
Richmond department full-time along with his handler, Heatherton, in 
August. In less than two months of service, Bari has conducted more 
than a dozen "sniff-out's," of which he has found drugs and illegal 
contraband nine or 10 times, Heatherton said.

"He gets a lot of work," he said. "(Bari) does a great job."

Heatherton, 28, of Beaver Creek, Ohio, joined RPD after serving the 
United States Air Force Security Police and the Mount Sterling Police 
Department. Heatherton said he became interested in working with 
K-9's during his time in the Air Force.

"I've always had a love for dogs and I love police work," he said. 
"What's better than to be able to do both at the same time? So far 
it's been very rewarding."

Bari is from Belaruse, Russia, and was purchased from Mid-Michigan 
Kennels Inc. in May and began training with Heatherton in July. Two 
days after the pair's Aug. 12 graduation, Bari got his chance to 
search for an alleged car theft fleeing from Kentucky State Police.

"I didn't expect to start that soon," Heatherton said.

Bari didn't catch the bad guy that day, but his dual-purpose police 
service training is an invaluable tool to the department.

"I can't imagine now what it would be like not to have one," said RPD 
Public Affairs Officer Willard Reardon.

In addition to using his snout to detect drugs, Bari is trained to 
track wanted suspects as well as missing persons. He can conduct area 
searches for evidence and article searches.

"Anything that can hold human odor, he can find," Heatherton said.

Bari is also trained to protect his handler from harm and will 
apprehend fleeing subjects.

"He's able to find what any of us aren't able to find," Heatherton 
said. "Having a police dog is probably one of the most valuable 
resources any department can have."

Reardon said the department has had a K-9 unit for 10-15 years. 
Heatherton and Bari serve alongside Senior Patrolman Travis Bowles 
and his black and tan German Shepherd, Rexo.

"Over the years they have confiscated a large amount of drugs that 
have been taken off the street," Reardon said. "They give us another 
tool to use in drug investigations."

In addition to being an asset in drug confiscation, Reardon said the 
dogs are also an asset to the department's budget. Monies derived 
from drug forfeiture money helps to purchase necessary items at 
little or no cost to the tax payers.

"We just bought backup weapons for every officer (with drug 
forfeiture money)," Reardon said.

Bari himself was purchased from drug forfeiture money, Heatherton 
said, for $8,500.

"Most police dogs pay for themselves throughout their career and end 
up making the department money," Heatherton said.

Though Bari is an aggressive alerter, he is trained to be social as 
long as he doesn't feel there is any threat to his handler.

"It's a new trend now to have social dogs that can still do their 
job," Heatherton said. "It's important to have them be able to be 
social with the community. That way he can not only catch bad guys, 
but he can help find missing children and Alzheimer's patients who 
have walked away from home."

Heatherton and Bari have also worked with children teaching them 
about dog safety. Bari has not had any "street bites," Heatherton 
said, where he has bitten innocent people. Heatherton said anytime 
citizens see Bari out in the city, it's important for people to ask 
Heatherton to approach the dog first and allow Bari to see that they 
are not a threat before petting him.

Bari lives at home with Heatherton and his other two dogs. Each day 
as Heatherton dons his uniform, he said Bari gets excited and is 
ready to work. Heatherton said taking care of Bari is just like 
having a child. The two even celebrate their birthdays together, 
which are on the same day in December.

"He takes care of me and I take care of him," Heatherton said. "I've 
always got somebody out there watching my back. My wife's happy to know that."
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MAP posted-by: Elaine