The New York State Police trains dozens of dogs for its police K9 Training Program all year round. Trooper Eric VanBramer has been a part of the canine unit for 12 years. He said the unit is very selective when recruiting a dog to train since the 20 weeks of residential training in Cooperstown can be rigorous…but there are breaks between training.

“You arrive on Monday and leave on Friday,” he said. “You live here all week. You work here all week with your dog. Friday, you go home. You come back to your family, and your dog comes with you.”

But then it’s back to work! K9 Partners can explore rooms that mimic real-life scenarios, such as detecting an explosive, drugs, a person, or a cadaver around a room- or storage items like lockers and cabinets.

“We put dog food… cat food. We’ll put peanut butter, dog biscuits… So, the dog has to work through that discrimination,” Trooper VanBramer said. “And he’s gotta leave that odor of peanut butter, and he’s gotta find the actual explosive.”

Trooper VanBramer says it’s all about repetition and constantly changing the items ‘ location. K9 police dogs also do ‘find and bite’ or’ find and bark’ scenarios.

They are trained to bite, shake, and hold the arm or leg of a suspect and then alert their handler when someone is found. But special suits protect each person from a k9’s bite pressure.

“[You] sometimes come out with some black and blues, but when you’re training the dog to engage a decoy- especially with new dogs- it’s good to have this suit,” he said.

After completing training, K9s are also involved with community programs, where they can learn social skills, and troopers can help inspire the next generation.

“I think having the visibility of the community, having the dogs engaged with the public, and the kids see what we’re doing,” Trooper VanBramer said. “And I think it opens their eyes so they can think, ‘I can do that one day. I wanna be a K9 Handler.’”

But once it’s time for retirement, each K9 can transition from police partner…to family pet.

“I currently have a retired dog at home,” Trooper VanBramer said. “She lives in the house. She’s a part of the family, and she’s a pet. She enjoys her retirement.”