Upper Gwynedd Police Will Soon Have A Working K9 Unit As Soon As Dogs Finish Training

UPPER GWYNEDD, PA — It was last fall when Matt Toro learned his employer, the Upper Gwynedd Police Department, would be starting up a K9 unit.

Toro, a police officer in the township for the past nine years, jumped at the chance to get involved since he has always considered himself a dog lover.

Toro and Ed Tartar, were eventually named the two human officers who would be staffing the K9 unit alongside Gunner, a Dutch Shepard, and Fury, a Belgian Malinois.

In August, Toro began dog training at the Penn Vet Working Dog Center in Philadelphia. He recently took a few moments to update Patch on how things are going.

“They really are remarkable,” Toro said of the center, which is affiliated with the University of Pennsylvania’s Penn Veterinary Hospital. “It’s a really well-oiled machine to watch it work.”

The Penn Vet Working Dog Center was inspired by the search and rescue dogs that sifted through the rubble during the 9/11 terrorist attacks, according to information found on its website.

Today, the center serves as a national research and development center for detection dogs.

There are veterinarians on staff at the center, but Toro mostly comes into contact with the trainers who work with the budding police canines. He will be undergoing training with his dog through November, after which the four-legged officers will be ready to start their jobs at the Upper Gwynedd Police Department.

“Penn Vet trains these dogs up wonderfully before we even get there,” Toro said.

Toro said the dogs learn how to conduct article searches, basically sniff out any clothing or items that have a human scent; they learn tracking and apprehension work; and they are taught about biting and holding a suspect, but also when to let go on command.

Toro said much of the training is actually for the human officer by the time he or she enters the program, since the dogs begin well beforehand.

Toro said the dogs often live with a foster family before they are released to the police departments. Once they do begin working, they typically stay at the home of their handlers. At this point, Gunner is living at home with Toro, while Fury is with fellow officer Tartar.

Toro said the K9 unit is something that Upper Gwynedd’s police chief, David Duffy, had wanted to start up for quite some time, briefing officers in the department about his desire during a general meeting a little while back.

Local commissioners and the township manager also supported the idea, Toro said, and the K9 unit was subsequently formed, albeit the unit will not actually be patrolling until after the dogs finish their 12-week training in November.

For now, various fundraisers and events have been held to help fund the unit, since police K9 units are often self-funded, hence why area police departments oftentimes share dogs with each other when they are needed.

Patch also recently spotlighted a new K9 unit in Lower Moreland Township in eastern Montgomery County as well as the county’s first-ever bloodhound tracking dog, which was recently acquired by Abington Township.