Police K-9 donated to Manatee County Search and Rescue

Post date: Sep 15, 2010 1:31:00 AM

PALMETTO-- A K-9 police dog was recently laid off from the Palmetto Police Department.

Lt. Scott Tyler said he didn't fit the job description.

"He wanted to lick people rather than bite them," Tyler said.

Kanin, an 88-pound, 18-month-old German Shepherd, was put up for adoption after he was deemed too nice to be a police dog.

Kanin was able to find a similar position, however. He was donated to the Manatee County Search and Rescue group."He's very social," said Sheena Byers, who is a volunteer with the search and rescue group. "He loves people. He's not the patrol dog type."Byers is training Kanin to be a live find dog, which means if someone goes missing, such as an Alzheimer patient or child, Kanin will help in the efforts to try to track them down."He's got a nose and the agility," Byers said.

Capt. Larry Leinhauser said Kanin will be a huge asset to the group."They can cover a whole lot of ground, more ground than we can," he said. "Their scent is multiple times stronger than ours are."

Kanin will be in training for the next six months or more.