Cleveland Metroparks Swears In Newest K-9 Patrol Officer
The 11-week-old German Shepherd will patrol the parks and search for explosives.
— -- Visitors of the Cleveland Metroparks can feel a little bit safer now that Tyson, the newest canine "officer" in the Patrol and Explosives unit, was sworn in Wednesday morning.
Tyson is 11 weeks old and the fourth dog in the Metropark’s K-9 unit.
The German Shepherd will work as a patrol officer as well as an explosives detection dog, part of a proactive protection measure taken by Cleveland Metroparks.
“These dogs offer an added layer of public security,” Rick Haase, director of communications for Cleveland Metroparks, told ABC News. “We have 680 buildings on more than 23,000 acres.”
Cleveland Metroparks is a network of parks and nature preserves in the Greater Cleveland area. The parks offer hundreds of miles of walking, cycling and horse trails, as well as a golf course and a zoo.
Tyson was sworn in alongside his partner, Trevor C. Poole, who has been a ranger with the park since 2014, according to a Metroparks press release.
“It’s a formal swearing in, just like with any officer,” Haase said. “They also took his paw prints.”
The new patrol puppy has brought a lot of excitement to the Metroparks community.
“All of the K-9 officers are special,” Haase told ABC. “We kind of feel like we have a new member of our family.”