New K9 Officer Joins Tulsa County Sheriff's Office

The Tulsa County Sheriff's Office has a new K9 officer named Kaine, who is trained to track people and sniff out evidence and drugs.

A business that trains K9s donated Kaine, and he has spent the last five weeks training with deputies.

He got certified last Thursday through the State of Oklahoma and is ready to get to work.

Tulsa County's new K9 officer, a 3-year-old Dutch Shepherd, is curious, photogenic and a good boy.

"Having Kaine is going to be a force multiplier for our deputies in the field in regard to finding narcotics, illegal narcotics that are being transported through Tulsa County,” said Capt. Michael Heisten with the Tulsa County Sheriff's Office.

Heisten is speaking for Kaine's handler because that deputy works undercover to fight drug trafficking.

Heisten said drug cartels come through Oklahoma from the southwest border and move throughout the country.

"Along with narcotics comes violent crime and guns and we want to make a profound impact on the narcotics trafficking in Tulsa County, and Kaine is one of the ways we're going to be able to fight that crime on drugs,” said Heisten.

With Kaine, the sheriff's office now has two K9 officers. Missy, a 5-year-old American Bloodhound, was also donated and has a nose for finding missing people.

"She most recently helped find an elderly man with dementia and a 4-year-old that had wandered off from her house,” said Sgt. Ernie Mendenhall, Missy’s handler. “She's also aided in suspect apprehensions as well."

The sheriff's office said having K9 officers means extra costs and monthly training, but the results are worth it.

"Our commitment to K9 operations, I believe, greatly enhances our ability to serve the community,” said Mendenhall. “It's more tools in the toolbox and more ways that we can focus on specific things.”

The sheriff's office said it did not have to pay for Kaine's training because he went through the Oklahoma Highway Patrol's program, and OHP waived the fee.

These K9 officers usually work five to 10 years before they retire, depending on their breed, health and what they're assigned to do.