Cayce PD adds new K9 officer thanks to local brewery

CAYCE, SC (WOLO) — K9 officers have a variety of uses but obtaining one can cost a police department thousands of dollars.

The newest Cayce police dog was bought and trained thanks to a community partnership.

“We have an EOD dog which finds explosives. We have criminal apprehension K9s. We have our patrol K9s which have many disciplines,” said Cayce police chief Chris Cowan.

The Cayce Police Department currently has four K9 officers and hopes to have six by the end of the summer. Getting police dogs to Cayce has been made possible thanks to Steel Hands Brewing and its Steel Paws initiative. 

“The chief came to us. Their K9 was getting ready to retire and there were no funds to bring another K9 on,” said Ashley Lambert, Steel Hands Brewing marketing director. “They needed some kind of opportunity to create some sustainable fundraising to bring another dog on. That’s how Steel Paws was created.”

Steel Paws helped Cayce PD bring on their newest K9 Nero, a German shepherd mix who will work to detect drugs and evidence alongside handler Justin Hartley. The two trained for five weeks up in Simpsonville. 

“We spent 10 thousand dollars. That was all inclusive for the dog and his training. We have a dog coming in April that’s a 15 thousand dollar dog,” Cowan said. “It depends on the source. the type of dog and different costs. The foundation pays the kennels directly for all of the expenses and then we are able to provide a service to the community.”

While Nero’s initial training has been completed, the learning for the dogs never ends. 

“Constant. The training with the K9s is constant. They are required to train a certain number of hours per month and while they are on shift,” the Cayce police chief said. “Every Tuesday, they normally train together as a unit. The handler and the dog have to train. It’s a perishable skill so we have to make sure that they maintain that skill.”

Whether it’s a therapy or crisis intervention dog or a patrol K9  the Cayce Police Department hopes to keep the community safer through its four-legged officers. 

 “It goes back to having K9s that can apprehend bad guys and find drugs and guns to get them off the streets,” Cowan said. “It also gives us the ability to find a child or an elderly person if they go missing or evidence at a crime scene.”

The next Steel Paws fundraising event will be held in May at Steel Hands Brewing.