PM helps police pups graduate

It was the dogs that brought Comrie Keenan back to the police force.

A cop since he was ‘‘a young fella’’, he left the job to see if there was anything else out there and, while he loved the Fire Brigade, there was one thing missing.

‘‘It was these guys,’’ he says, gesturing to the massive black dog lying at his feet. ‘‘You just can’t compete with being able to work with these guys.’’

On Thursday, Keenan and his 26-month-old alsatian named Skudder, graduated from Porirua Police College, and it’s not the first time he’s done it.

‘‘He’s my fifth dog and they’re all different. He’s particularly good with tracking and apprehension.’’

A real handful as a pup, the personality traits that will make Skudder a great police dog also made him hard work at times, his handler said.

‘‘Not all dogs make the cut but he obviously did, showed some good traits and he’s also a nice dog to have around people.’’

Watching the graduation was daughter Stevie-Anne who helped with raising Skudder, the only one of his five daughters who wasn’t scared of the dogs. ‘‘He’s sometimes friendly,’’ she said.

It’s taken about a year of training to get this far, the pair joined by four other graduating duos - two from Customs - and watched by the families who fostered the dogs as pups.

Prime Minister Jacinda Adern handed out certificates and spoke of growing up with a policeman father, something she said provided her with a bit of insight into the job police do.

‘‘As the daughter of a policeman you should never be late to school, lest you be dropped off with the police lights on.’’

She was no stranger to police dogs either, although much more comfortable around them these days.

‘‘I remember the alsatians that came to visit and they absolutely terrified me, but how can you not adore them unless you’re being chased by them?’’

All general-purpose police patrol dogs are German shepherds and are supplied by the police dog breeding programme, based near Wellington.

According to the police website, the dogs respond to more than 30,000 incidents each year. Their handlers are officers with about five years policing experience before they join the dog unit.