Training day

Police K-9 Fargo will chase down a fleeing suspect, bite and shake him around. But at home he's a pet to a 2- and 5-year-old."I don't have any worries with him at home with my kids," said his handler and Roseville Police Officer Josh Wheeler. Fargo, his four-year teammate, sits across his lap while he plays video games. Roseville Police dogs and their handlers train 19 to 26 hours each month. The five dogs practice searching for drugs and catching thieves. They are all from Europe or second-generation German shepherds, except for Fargo, who is originally from the Czech Republic. For work, when they're not training or out on patrol, the K-9 officers sometimes work the meet-and-greet circuit."I've probably been to every school in the city, even private schools," Wheeler said.Dogs are selected for similar reasons as a coach chooses a wrestler or a football player - trainers look for a level-headed individual who enjoys the fight without getting angry."We don't antagonize these dogs and make them mean so they want to bite everybody, said John Riboni, an independent police dog trainer who works with Roseville Police K-9s. "We select dogs that are sociable."Dogs will jump up and lick his face. Then he'll put on protective equipment and they'll charge and bite him during training. Afterward, with the equipment off, they'll play with him again. "To think that police dogs are all mean and want to bite everybody is a misconception," Riboni said."A lot of people think we have dogs because they have teeth," said Sgt. Troy Bergstrom, K-9 coordinator.Actually, K-9s are mostly used for drug searches."Their noses are 800 times better than ours," Bergstrom said.The handlers say the dogs know when it's Tuesday night - training time. They bark and howl from the back of police cruisers."No," Officer David Faingold shouted at 90-pound German shepherd Blax, trying to quiet him in a bank parking lot at 9 p.m.Nearby, Eivo roared his bark as Officer Chris Nowicki got out of his car. "I know - ughh," he said, answering Eivo's howling. "Seven years of that. I'm going to be deaf by the time I'm 40." "This is fun for them," Wheeler said. "They know this is training."First up was a drug search exercise at Roseville motel. Five police cruisers all marked as K-9 units pull up. Bergstrom looked at motel occupants who stuck their heads out of doors to view the commotion. "A lot of dope's been flushed down the toilet in the last 10 minutes," he said.Each handler has a case of drugs that were originally confiscated from suspects. For this exercise, four bags containing marijuana, methamphetamines, cocaine and heroin are hidden throughout the room. Hotels and other businesses donate their facilities to let the K-9 units train.The next exercise was searching for burglar suspects at a construction site. Department assistant Scott Miszkewycz played the role of "agitator," or chew toy. His protective gear is equal to six ski suits. He crouched against a wall in the dark and waited for the dogs to find him. Each handler took a turn shouting down the alley, "Roseville Police! Give yourself up or I'll send my dog and he will bite you!" After a few such simulated warnings the search was on. Actually, most dogs smelled Miszkewycz and immediately charged in his direction but were held back and made to check other inlets and doorways where would-be criminals may hide."This is a realistic situation," Faingold said. Many times police happen upon thieves at a construction site after normal work hours. Some even put on helmets and reflective gear. "Oh we're just finishing up," they'll say. "What's the name of the construction company?" Faingold will ask.The biggest give-away, he said, is when they turn their heads to look for a name on a trailer or sign.When the dogs find Miszkewycz they stop in front of him before the handler gives the command to bite. They usually go for the arm and he shouts a groan as if in pain. Really, he only feels pressure.Officer Gage Lawley is considering a future as a K-9 handler and did a ride-along during training that night. He was the chew toy at the next exercise - simulation of a suspect evading arrest by hiding out in a drainage tube.Each dog would disappear charging into the tube. Two seconds later Lawley's shouts echoed out."Aaaarrrgh ..." (pause for breath) "aaaaargggh."The department began with two dogs in 1987. A grant from Thunder Valley Casino gave them the fifth dog.Each handler is a tenured officer with extensive street patrol experience. Dogs are a high liability item. Every two years they attend an update class to learn new regulations."It's a very stinky existence," Wheeler said in his patrol car with Fargo in the back. "It's impossible to keep hair off you."Wheeler does a narcotic search nearly every shift.One time a dog kept signaling an empty back seat of a car. The officers asked the driver why. The driver admitted the day before he transported a backpack with marijuana in it.Other times a dog is a deterrent and the officer doesn't have to do anything."A certain percentage of society is afraid of dogs," Wheeler said. "There's no outrunning Fargo."