By Sri Lanka is one of the countries that took to establishing police kennels, and the trained police dogs have assisted in crime detection for seventy years.
Police dogs are trained to use their keen senses of smell and hearing to help officers with a variety of tasks, including catching criminals and detecting drugs. Police dogs are often used to track down suspects who have fled the scene of a crime. Their sense of smell is so acute that they can pick up a scent trail that is hours or even days old. Once a dog has picked up a scent, it will follow it relentlessly until it finds the source.
Dogs can also be used to apprehend suspects who are resisting arrest. Their size and strength can be a powerful deterrent, and they can also be trained to bite or bark to subdue suspects.
Detecting drugs: Police dogs are also commonly used to detect drugs. Their sense of smell is so sensitive that they can detect even the smallest traces of drugs, even if they are hidden in a container or on a person’s body. Dogs are often used to search luggage at airports and train stations, as well as to search vehicles and homes.
Training: Police dogs undergo a rigorous training program that typically lasts for several months. During training, they are taught to identify the scents of various drugs as well as to follow commands and track scents. They are also trained to be obedient and to control their aggression.
Breeds: The most common breeds of police dogs are German Shepherds, Belgian Malinois, and Labrador Retrievers. These breeds are all known for their intelligence, trainability, and athleticism. Police dogs can detect up to 10,000 different scents. A dog’s sense of smell is up to 100,000 times more sensitive than a human’s. Police dogs can work for up to 10 years and then they retire.
The idea of using dogs for police duties was first presented by Police Inspector N. O. Shokman in 1948, and the first dog training unit was set up on April 4, 1948, at Achilan Square, Colombo. Inspector Shokman bought Rex, a male German Shepherd, for 175 rupees and Sheeba, a female German Shepherd, for 200 rupees. Police Constables Bertras, Armstone, and Devanayagam, who were still in training, were the first dog handlers.
The Official Dog Unit was shifted to Kandy and still remains the key training center for police dogs. Currently, the Kennels division in Sri Lanka Police has about 250 working dogs in 56 different locations within the country.
The Sri Lankan police once (in 2011) organized a wedding ceremony and later had to apologize as the Minister for Culture said that it undermined the country’s culture.
