Upper Gwynedd Police K9 Teams Graduate From Scent Detection School

UPPER GWYNEDD, PA — Gunner and Fury, the two K9 dogs belonging to the Upper Gwynedd Police Department, have graduated from a scent detection program put on by the PennVet Working Dog Center in Philadelphia, the department recently announced.

The dogs, along with their handlers — human partners, Officers Matt Toro and Ed Tartar —graduated the 10-week school and are now adept at sniffing out certain substances that police officers often come across while on duty.

Toro worked with Gunner as the four-legged officer learned how to detect a wide variety of illegal drugs while Tartar helped Fury learn to detect various types of accelerants and explosives, according to the Upper Gwynedd Police Department, which made the announcement about the graduation via social media.

The department called the training program "rigorous," saying it involved dozens of searches under multiple circumstances and locations and involved the "imprinting" of different scents.

"These dogs are absolutely amazing and they will be such an asset to our department," Upper Gwynedd stated on Facebook. "Now that they are done school, our canines and their handlers can't wait to get back to Upper Gwynedd to be out in the community and use their skills!"

Patch profiled the two new K9 dogs in a piece published last fall.