11th Wild About Animals
Working K-9 Association of Central PA
April 3, 2010



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  The Working K-9 Association of Central Pennsylvania (WKACP) returned to WAA but with a difference. Rather than an indoor demonstration, WKACP had a large area outside, and what a tremendous difference that made. It was far easier watching (and photographing) the remarkable demonstration of officers and dogs.

The WKACP is a volunteer group involved in finding and rescuing people. Its members are highly skilled, and they came to WAA with several talented dogs.

To start, Craig Bohren had his golden retriever Cuz tracking an object.

 
Craig Bohren instructing Cuz
 
 
  And Cuz is on the trail.

 
Cuz on the trail
 
 
  The object was found.

Craig Bohren then demonstrated the scenting abilityies of Dart, his Australian shepherd. Only one item of the dozen or so had the target scent.

 
Dart sniffs her choice
 
 
  Does Dart pick the correct one? Absolutely!

Dart returns it for her reward.

 
Craig Bohren and his Australian shepherd Dart
 
 
  The following event had two people hiding on the grounds, and Dart finding them by air scenting into the "lost people."

Officer Mark Swindell was the next one up, with his German Shepherd/Belgian Malinois mixed breed dog, Cezar.

Here, Cezar comes trotting to Mark Swindell's call. One of Cezar's jobs is to sniff out narcotics. Some substance was hidden and then Cezar found it.

 
Cezar comes to Officer Mark Swindell's call
 
 
  What happened next is what I call a super catch. Cezar's reward is a ball toss, and he's ready while Mark winds up.

 
Cezar waits for Mark's toss
 
 
  The toy is thrown (and it's visible in the upper left), and Cezar is after it.

 
Cezar after toy
 
 
  And with a great leap, Cezar catches the ball.

 
Cezar catch
 
  My question after Cezar's catch is whether one gives a reward after giving a reward.

Identifying Officer Mark Swindell's patrol car is straightforward: Cezar's portrait is stenciled on the side. (Good idea. Maybe he'll start a trend.)

Officer Kris Hopkins (and current president of WKACP) and her dog Keno then gave another great demonstration. It started simply, with Keno finding the keys that Kris had dropped.

One of the good aspects from the WKACP members is that they gave more than a show. Each person told us a lot of information about the training, behavior, and background of their dogs.

There were instructions for Keno.

 
Officer Kris Hopkins instructing Keno
 
 
  And there was rewarding Keno for a job well done.

 
Officer Kris Hopkins rewarding Keno
 
 
  At the same time, Kris kept the audience informed about everything that was occurring.

 
Officer Kris Hopkins narrating
 
 
  The next demonstration was Keno apprehending and then keeping in check a bad guy (as performed by Officer Mark Swindell).

Well, the bad guy looks okay, but can you trust him?

 
Keno and Mark eyeing each other
 
 
  Trust was broken, and Keno goes into action.

 
Keno apprehending Mark
 
 
  In an emergency situation, having a large, strong dog available is a definite plus. But what I never knew until now is just how rapidly a dog can leave a car - through the window.

 
Keno out the window
 
 
  And onto the ground.

 
Keno lands on the ground
 
 
  And Keno is running at full speed.

 
Keno off running
 
 
  Wonderful event, wonderful people, wonderful animals. That is true for the entire WAA.  



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