County Welcomes New K-9 Odijn to the Dane County Bomb Squad
July 03, 2013
Elise Schaffer, PIO
(608) 284-6142
Dane County Executive Joe Parisi and Dane County Sheriff Dave Mahoney today welcomed the newest member of the Dane County Bomb Squad to the job – a two-year old K-9 detector dog named Odijn (ODE-IN), originally from the Netherlands.
The Dane County Regional Airport purchased Odijn for $10,000 for the Sheriff’s Office to bring him to Dane County. On the job, Odijn and his handler, Deputy Scott Lindner, will conduct searches of airplanes, unattended and/or suspicious packages, freight from the loading dock, and any other need that may arise at the airport.
“Skilled canines like Odijn help make our busy airport safer and more secure for travelers and visitors,” said Parisi. “We owe a great deal to the dedicated men and women of the Dane County Sheriff’s Office, and their K-9 co-workers, who keep our communities safe every day.”
In addition to his work at the airport, K-9 Odijn will assist in searching Camp Randall stadium, dignitary events, and any other needs or searches requested by the Dane County Bomb Squad. Odijn is certified in explosives through the North American Police Work Dog Association and is trained in 19 explosive odors.
Odijn is replacing canine team member Dani, who is retiring after a decade of service to Dane County. Deputy Linder and Dani worked together during that time. In addition to their work at the airport and at Camp Randall stadium, the team assisted federal agencies in conducting searches for: Hilary Clinton, Al Gore, Bruce Springsteen, His Holiness the Dalai Lama, and President Obama.
“Today we not only welcome Odijn to the Dane County Sheriff’s Office family, but we celebrate the hard work and dedication of K-9 Dani,” said Dane County Sheriff Dave Mahoney. “Dani has been by Scott’s side on many important calls and assignments throughout the years. She has been and will always be a valued member of our agency. Odijn will quite literally follow in her footsteps, and we are confident that with Deputy Lindner’s skilled training, Odijn will do a exemplary job.”
Over the years Deputy Lindner and Dani assisted the Secret Service, State Department, FBI, ATF&E, as well as other Bomb Squads in the state. The team averaged around 380 calls for service a year.
“We welcome Odijn all the way from the Netherlands to Dane County,” said Supervisor Paul Rusk, a member of the Airport Commission and chair of the Public Protection & Judiciary Committee. “Odijn will actually be joining the family of one of our deputies so he will have a normal family life when he is not on duty at the Airport or other events.”
The Dane County Sheriff's Office has used canines since as early as 1901. The current K-9 program has been in place since 1982, making it the longest serving K-9 Unit in Dane County. Many dedicated deputies and canines have served on the Unit. The K-9 Unit currently consists of five teams. Each team consists of a handler (deputy) and their canine partner. There are three patrol teams, one explosives detection team, and one search/rescue team.
Law enforcement has used canines for many years. Canines have been used in the area of detection (explosives, narcotics, accelerants, and cadaver), tracking, and building searches. Dogs provide a valuable resource to law enforcement due to their trainability, olfactory system, and four legs. Dogs can detect odors we cannot and with their four legs they are much faster than we are.
An explosive detection canine is trained to detect odors associated with explosives. An explosives detection canine can be utilized in many ways, such as; vehicle searches, luggage, aircraft, and crime scenes. There are many other methods and types of equipment used to detect explosives, but the most popular of which is still the Explosive Detector Dog.
Once the odor is detected by the canine, it is up to the Dane County Bomb Squad to render the device safe. Explosive Detection Canine Odijn, when not keeping the passengers safe at the Dane County Regional Airport, will be assisting the Dane County Bomb Squad in conducting searches throughout the county.
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