K-9 Unit The K-9 Unit became part of the Santa Cruz County Sheriff's Office Operations Bureau in 1998.  The K-9 Unit consists of a Sheriff's Lieutenant as Service Dog Manager and two Sheriff's Deputies.  Each of the deputies is assigned to work as a team with one of two dogs.    Tomi, a German Shepherd from Europe, is the newest member of the team.   Odin is also a German Shepherd. The first steps in establishing the K-9 unit were finding suitable dogs and training them and their handlers.  The Sheriff's Office worked with locally owned and operated MAR-KEN International to accomplish these goals. All K-9 teams attend a rigorous four-week training at MAR-KEN, including area and building searches, tracking, car stops, handler protection, and obedience training.  The teams also attend regularly scheduled training update sessions.   In memory:  The K-9 Unit suffered a loss  when service dog Branko was hit and killed by a car.

Santa Cruz County Sheriff 701 Ocean St. Rm. 340 Santa Cruz, CA 95060 Phone: (831)471-1121 sheriff@scsheriff.com Copyright © '03