Two-year-old German Shepherd Arlo recently joined the ranks of the Thurston County Sheriff’s Office. Partnered with his handler, Deputy Tyler Turpin, the dog is a gentle giant who loves kids and likes to play when not on the job. But, when it is time to go to work, he is all business.

Arlo joins the department

Arlo and Turpin are the fourth K9 unit to join the Thurston County Sheriff’s Office in Olympia, Washington. Arlo and Turpin just recently started their job with the department. Before that Arlo spent 400 hours training over a period of a few months to prepare for his life as a K9 officer.

“For us, it’s been smooth sailing,” Turpin told the Nisqually Valley News. “We’re both just excited to get out and start doing work and help get some bad people that need to be caught.”

A busy first week

By their first Friday together, Arlo and Turpin had been sent out on five separate calls, the last resulting in the K9’s first capture.

“The suspect was located going out the back door and complied once K9 Arlo enthusiastically announced his presence,” Turpin wrote in a Facebook post. “Male was placed into custody without incident. Capture number one in the books for K9 Arlo.”

Arlo is perfect for police work

Turpin noticed some qualities right off the bat that made Arlo perfect for police work. He had a high drive to hunt while being extremely sociable. This makes the K9 great at tracking down suspects while also being excellent in working with members of the public. But life is not all work for Arlo.

Recounting the first time he met the Arlo, Turpin said, “Arlo, when you meet him, he’s the nicest dog. He’s the happiest, easy-going dog that you’ll meet. He’s just a happy guy … To me, seeing how he works and how he interacts with people, he’s the perfect police dog because he loves kids, he likes people, but when it’s time to do the job, he does the job.”

Arlo’s heritage

Arlo, like his fellow K9 officers on the force, comes from a special breed of German shepherd heritage and hails from Canada, coming to the Thurston County Sheriff’s Department at seven-months-old. As a police K9, Arlo eats a diet of four cups of dog food per day. He also receives special pills to help keep his joints healthy and receives regular checkups at the vet.

Sgt. Rod Ditrich, team lead for the Thurston County K9 Program, had this to say about Arlo and the other police dogs on at the department, “We won’t settle for less than exactly what we’re looking for… We just won’t compromise that,” Ditrich said. “And socializing a dog that can roll around the floor with kids is just as important as if they can protect their handler.”

A gentle giant

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As for Arlo in particular, Ditrich had this to say about the K9 officer, “He’s a gentle giant, is the lack of better terminology, is what I would call him. He loves his job. He lives, eats and breathes his work. For him, it’s just a game… This dog is going to be one of the best dogs we’ve had.”

H/T: Nisqually Valley News