New Ronan K9 defends city

May 1 wasn’t just the start of a new month this year, but also a debut of a new officer in town.

Walking on all fours, Sandor, a 13-month-old Belgium Malinois, began his patrolling duties with Ronan Police Officer Brandon Smith.

During the Ronan City Council meeting Monday evening, Smith introduced Sandor to council members.

“We’re on the road… which (Sandor’s) loving,” he said, as his new faithful sidekick eagerly looked around the room.

Smith said that he became a handler because of not only his love of dogs, but also because of his respect to law enforcement and K9 units.

Typical of a puppy, Sandor’s demeanor is playful, curious and eager.

Smith explained that when Sandor alerts to narcotics, he gets excited because the process is a game to him, with the reward being his favorite toy.

Sandor is certified to alert to multiple drugs including methamphetamine, marijuana, heroin, MDMA (ecstacy), and cocaine.

Training with Sandor is ongoing, Smith said.

There is a minimum of two hours of narcotics training a week for the K9 program, and the team trains both on and off duty.

“Any chance I get, I’ll do training,” Smith said.

Most dogs have a threshold of what they can alert on, but various training will keep Sandor from hitting that limit, Smith explained.

The K9 has been trained to alert on as much as four kilos of cocaine.

Sandor only listens to Smith’s commands, which are in Dutch.

Just don’t go learning the language to try throwing the dog off his game, because it won’t do any good.

Ronan Mayor Kim Aipperspach asked Smith if someone who knows Dutch would be able to give Sandor a command.

“He’s mainly trained to me. With these dogs, a lot of it is tone of voice and a lot of it is they have to build up respect to you,” Smith said.

Should a suspect know Dutch and start shouting commands, they would not work on Sandor.

The same goes for other officers, Smith added.

“He’s going to listen to me.”

Down the road, other officers will know how to subdue Sandor should an event occur where Smith becomes incapacitated, he explained to council.

Sandor lives with Smith, his wife Melissa, and their two dogs, Fenix, a German shepherd, and Shiloh, a lab-husky mix.

Smith said that the pooches get along well.

The K9 has his own outdoor kennel, but on nights where the weather is not suitable, Sandor goes into the house.

Smith drove cross-country back in March in his newly K9-tricked-out cruiser.

He traveled to Shallow Creek Kennel in Sharpsville, Pennsylvania, where he met puppies and bonded with Sandor.

Together they trained for six weeks.

The drive home was fun, as Smith said it was nice to have someone with which to drive the 31-hour journey.

The boys-only roadtrip was “definitely a fun experience,” Smith recalled.

When Sandor is home, off duty, Smith said he enjoys being one of the dogs, playing fetch or lounging around.

Once Sandor notices that Smith has his work uniform on, his tail starts wagging and he gets excited.

“He runs straight from that kennel and into the car,” Smith said.

In addition to alerting on narcotics, Sandor can also track a person, if needed, Smith said.

Since Sandor is an apprehension dog, meaning he will latch on to a person in a pursuit, he will always be supervised.

Ronan Police Chief Ken Weaver, K9 supervisor, said Sandor is “a community bridge.”

The dog has helped break down barriers that sometimes exist between law enforcement and the community.

Smith noted that as people see Sandor patrolling, they ask to pet him or take photos with him.

As Sandor becomes acclimated to the area and learns the ropes of his new job, Smith said the duo will start making rounds at schools and other venues in the fall.

Once Sandor is fully grown, which should be in the next six months or so, the department plans on purchasing a tailored ballistic vest, which will have a price tag of about $2,200.

Smith said the vest will fit to Sandor perfectly, minimizing injury, as well as help regulate his body temperature in extreme weather conditions.

Like most people in this day and age, Sandor has his own Facebook page, and Smith said the K9 enjoys making new friends on the social media site. He can be found by searching for Sandor Ronan.

“He likes having friends,” Smith said.

Weaver said that the more fun content of Sandor will be posted to his page, while anything work-related will be posted to the Ronan Police Department’s Facebook page.

To make donations to the K9 program, checks may be made out to the City of Ronan/Ronan Police Department K9.

Weaver added that if citizens would like their donations to go toward something specific, like food or Sandor’s vest, add a brief description in the memo area of the check saying “food” or “vest.”