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K9 Program
The Storm Lake Police Department is proud to announce the addition of a new K-9 officer to the department’s team. Duke, a year-and-a-half-old Belgian Malinois, was sworn in by the mayor Monday, June 2, alongside his handler, Officer Mitchell Fritz.
Duke was born in Holland, and selected at 10 weeks old especially for police training. He completed his training last month at North Iowa K-9 and is certified as a multi-purpose police dog.
Fritz completed four weeks of training with Duke prior to the K-9 beginning duty with Storm Lake Police. “It’s a mutual process – an officer learning the dog, and the dog learning the officer,” Officer Fritz explained. “A bonding period takes about three months to fully develop.”
The K-9 officer will assist in patrol operations, including tracking suspects, searching for narcotics, article recovery, and officer protection. K-9s like Duke play an important role in policing, offering skills and capabilities that enhance safety and efficiency in police work.
“Having a police dog is a real advantage for a department. In narcotics enforcement, a dog’s sense of smell is 40 times greater than that of humans, and a dog can detect narcotics that we couldn’t,” Officer Fritz said. “A K-9 also adds an element of safety. In a dangerous incident, a dog may be able to subdue a subject in a way that avoids having to use potentially deadly force.”
Duke will work all shifts with Officer Fritz, and reside with him when off duty.
Storm Lake’s K-9 program dates back to 1995, and Duke is the ninth K-9 to serve the city. Previous K-9s include Titan (1995-1998), Dando (1996-1998), Samson (1998-2001), Max (2001-2004), Siska (2004-2008), Findy (2008-2011), Cesar (2012-2015), and Ozzy (2019-2024).
The Storm Lake Police Department’s K-9 program is funded entirely through private donations.
“We would like to thank the many individuals, businesses, and nonprofit organizations whose generous support has made this important program possible,” Chief Chris Cole said.
How You Can Help
Anyone wishing to contribute to the program is asked to donate to the Go Fund Me page or forward their donations to the Storm Lake Police Department K9 Program at 401 East Milwaukee Avenue, Storm Lake, IA 50588.