K-9 Unit

About the K-9 Unit

The Ottawa County Sheriff’s Office K-9 Unit is made up of four deputies and their four highly trained police dogs. Each K-9 team is certified in a wide range of specialized law enforcement functions, including:

• Human scent tracking

• Building, area, and article searches

• Locating missing persons

• Obedience and handler protection

• Criminal apprehension

• Narcotics detection

To maintain peak performance, K-9 teams train together on a weekly basis and are required to recertify annually. This ensures their skills remain sharp and court-admissible for testimony. The K-9 Unit is routinely deployed for investigations involving break-ins, robberies, homicides, narcotics enforcement, escapes, and missing persons cases.

Some K-9s are also trained to detect narcotics residue on U.S. currency, often used in seizure cases. Additionally, the unit supports the Western Michigan Enforcement Team and the Critical Response Team during high-risk operations, helping ensure safe and effective building entries.

K-9 Demonstrations

The K-9 Unit proudly provides educational demonstrations to schools, community groups, churches, scout troops, and at public events such as parades and safety expos. These events showcase the team’s unique skills and foster positive relationships with the community. Demonstrations are available by request, and the unit values the strong public support it receives.

K-9 Continuing Education

Each K-9 Team is certified through the North American Police Work Dog Association (NAPWDA), with annual recertification required. These certifications—covering areas such as tracking and drug detection—ensure the teams meet national standards and are qualified to provide expert testimony in legal proceedings. In addition to weekly in-house training, the K-9 teams regularly train with neighboring law enforcement agencies to maintain top-tier readiness and reinforce inter-agency collaboration.