The criminals' nightmare: meet the police's operational dogs

Staff Sergeant Shahar Barda, 24, has been serving in the police for six years and serves as a unit commander at the Glilot station in the Yarkon district. Every shift, she goes out into the field with the same four-legged partner - Venom, a German Shepherd from the Czech Republic and a police protection dog who accompanies her in the patrol car. Barda already knows how to identify the moment when a suspect realizes they are in trouble; sometimes it happens even before a word is spoken. She opens the patrol car door, Venom gets out - and the event changes in seconds.

"When you arrive at an event and they see a 35-kilo police German Shepherd, many times the suspect says to himself: 'I don't want to mess with this'," Barda tells Walla. "You tell the suspect 'Stop, don't move' and you see him simply stop. If not, the dog chases him."

Venom is not a search dog that only arrives when called to the scene. She is with Barda in the patrol car throughout the shift and enters with her into events where it is necessary to take control of a suspect, chase a fugitive, or locate a person who is hiding. According to Barda, her presence alone often changes the whole picture.

Staff Sergeant Barda emphasized Venom's contribution to police activity. "In 99% of the events I enter with her, whether it's an event between spouses or an event of drunk people, the very fact that she is there changes the behavior," she says. "I had an incident of violence between spouses. A third party reported that he saw a man hitting a woman on the street. The moment I got out with the dog, the event changed in seconds. He cooperated, he didn't resist. When you see a dog locked on you as a target, you understand exactly what is happening."

Venom is trained to react or cease activity according to the commands given to her. Barda emphasizes that her operation is done according to the situation: "If I am alone, I can lay her down with a 'down' command. If I have a suspect who is running away, I can send her after him. If there is a fear for my life, I can activate her."

According to her, the very presence of the dog has already reduced the need to use other means. "It reduced the amount of Taser use. Suspects don't run away," she says.

Operates by sense of smell

In one of the proactive activities against a gang of burglars that operated in the Tel Aviv district sector, the suspects were located inside a vehicle with property suspected to be stolen. One of them tried to escape. "There was an activation of the dog and an arrest was made," says Barda.

Another case is especially etched in her memory. "I had an arrest of a gang of burglars with her. She went from zero to a hundred," she says. "I trust her with my eyes closed, one hundred percent. The confidence I have when I am with her at an event is different. As far as I'm concerned, when I'm with her I know I have backup."

One of Venom's prominent abilities is locating people who are trying to hide. Barda explains that in cases of illegal residents hiding at construction sites or in complex areas, the dog's advantage is significant. "If an illegal resident is hiding at a construction site, and you do a scan, a person who is in fear secretes a scent. A dog has senses much stronger than ours. She can turn the place over in seconds and locate him."

But the connection between them does not end with commands. Barda says that Venom also learned to read her in real time. "When I am managing an event, a dog smells what my body secretes. If I am one-on-one against a suspect and she feels my stress, she protects me. It's a connection that there is no way to really describe."

Dogs at the crime scene in the south

Staff Sergeant Haim Suissa, 31, and commander of the K9 unit in the Southern National Guard in the Border Police (Magav), tells about the dogs that help the National Guard fighters in finding weapons and drugs in the south: "In recent weeks, there have been a number of significant events in the unit. During headquarters activity in Rahat, a sniffing dog of the unit led the forces to locate three long-barreled weapons of the M16 type and magazines, which are suspected to have been used for shooting."

The unit in the National Guard has eight dog handlers. Suissa says that "the training process of the dog handler and the dog is done together and lasts about half a year. Already at the stage of the delegation's departure for purchasing dogs abroad, the most suitable and high-quality dogs for the system are located, while adapting them to their purpose - sniffing dogs or police dogs." The police dogs are intended for attack, in addition to this Staff Sergeant Suissa says: "Upon the arrival of the dogs in Israel, they undergo an acclimatization process and comprehensive tests, and in accordance with the pre-determined characterization, each dog is matched to a dog handler. The two go through the training course together, finish it as a team, and arrive at the operational units in the field as full partners for work."

According to him, the joint work in the field is challenging and rewarding. The sniffing dogs assist the forces in locating drugs and weapons, while the police dogs integrate into arrest activities, friction events, and operational activity. The dogs are a significant tool for presence, deterrence, and control of an event, sometimes even having the ability to prevent its escalation from the start.

Staff Sergeant Suissa says that "during operational activity in the south, a tactical pursuit dog participated in a chase after a suspect who fled in a vehicle. After a drive of about half a kilometer, the suspect abandoned the vehicle and began to flee on foot towards the diaspora. The dog handler released the dog, which acted quickly towards the suspect and helped the forces bring about his arrest."

Barda: "At home she is a completely different dog"

Staff Sergeant Barda took Venom into her care when she was 3 years old without prior experience, and the two went through a training process together that lasted about seven months. "You work with the dog on body language. It's a daily connection. She learns you and you learn her."

In the Tel Aviv district, according to Barda, she is the only one currently paired with a dog in this format. In Israel, a total of six dogs operate within the project. Venom does not return to the kennel at the end of the shift. She returns home with Barda. "At home she is a completely different dog," says Barda. "She sees me wearing a uniform and she knows she is entering work mode. At home she is at home one hundred percent. She knows how to make the separation. I can give her an attack command, and after a second you will come to pet her and she will be completely normal."

At the home of the two, there is no event, no chase, and no commands - there is simply a connection that lasts far beyond working hours. "I replace her for every friend I have outside. She is my best friend," says Barda. "After a busy shift you have a partner. She is part of me, part of the family."

If to judge by the work in the field, it is hard to ignore the fact that only six dogs currently operate in Israel in this format. As far as Barda is concerned, Venom has already proven herself quite a few times. "This is the best partner I could have asked for as a police officer. Many times, just from the moment she is seen, the event already looks different."