June 8 speaker: Sgt. Stender from the k-9 Unit and Nash

Our speaker this month will be Sgt.  Andy Stender of  the MPD K-9 unit and he’s bringing his  partner, Nash.

The Minneapolis K-9 Unit has been operating since 1966.  There are currently 16 officer/K-9 teams.

The dogs are purchased by the Minneapolis Police K-9 Foundation from an independent   vending agency.  Candidates  must be social dogs who are at ease with people, and  they must be dogs who enjoy playing but can focus on command.  Police K-9s are “nose” dogs, not hunters.  The dogs currently  in the unit are chiefly German Shepherds, but also include a Malinois, Malinois/Shepherd crosses, and a single Dutch Shepherd.

The dogs are initially trained for detection and apprehension. They then  receive further training in explosive or narcotics detection, and other specialties.  Sgt. Stender’s partner, Nash, is part of the SWAT team.   Above all, the dog’s primary work goal is to make the work safer for the humans he works with.

The teams are truly teams:  the dogs work the same shift  with their humans, go home to the family after the shift is over to relax  and enjoy home life.  Dogs retire at about 10 years old to spend their retirement years with their human family.