Staff Writer

Wanted: Crime stopper. Must be agile, have great sense of smell, love kids and hate bad guys.

The call has gone out for a new dog to help Scarborough police, one that will be able to sniff drugs and weapons, search for missing people and chase potentially violent suspects who ignore warnings to stop.

Then it must be able to go home with patrolman Mike Sawyer, and become a companion as well as a colleague.

Since the beginning of February, when a German shepherd named Jasou died from a lung infection, Sawyer, Sgt. Tom Chard and the K-9 unit have relied on its remaining dog, Chesca, to carry the canine burden of law enforcement.

Private donations totaling $6,900 will pay for buying and training a new dog.

Selection, however, is more complicated than cash, and Sawyer said he already has taken two dogs home to determine if they are fit for family and crime fighting.

So far the demanding position remains open, Sawyer said.

“I’m looking for a dog that really wants to work,” said Chard, leader of the K-9 team and a 15-year team veteran. Chard said he and Chesca are now a team, and Sawyer will train Jasou’s replacement.

Chard said the unit gets 100 calls a year and must be ready to corner and capture a suspect. The dog also  must be docile enough to live with a family and visit schools.

Labrador retrievers have the smell to succeed in sniffing out drugs, but may not have the drive needed to help apprehend someone on the run. Chard said he prefers German shepherds or the Belgian malinois breed. A Belgian malinois is similar in size and frame to a German shepherd.

Chesca is a Belgian malinois, a short-haired, long-nosed female the color of dark sand who has worked with Chard since June 2008, he said.

The dog is agile enough to leap to windowsills during weekly training exercises and determined enough to try to yank a chew toy from Chard. She also heels quickly and loves a good scratch on the back.

“It is like a switch in the dog, it has to turn on,” Chard said.

When a candidate is selected, it must have 480 hours of training to be certified by Maine Criminal Justice Academy and United States Police Canine Association standards, Chard said.

Contrary to the old canard that you can’t teach an old dog new tricks, Chard said he’s looking for a dog that is at least 2 years old.

“They are a lot more mature and trainable,” Chard said of older dogs.

Once on duty, Chard hopes the dog can serve for eight or 10 years.

Sawyer, who called Jasou a partner for seven years, said he was drawn to the canine team because of the diversity of the work. Jasou was the first, and until now, only dog he worked with, and his passing was also a loss to his family.

“We had the best of both worlds,” Sawyer said.

After hundreds of hours of training for certification, the dogs continue to get weekly sessions in a building near the Casco Bay Ferry Lines Terminal in Portland and a wooded parcel in Windham.

Rewards for finding a stash of drugs or stopping a suspect can include play with a chew toy or tennis ball or a small treat. On scene, though, Sawyer said there is little time to reward a dog while also trying to subdue someone.

As much as Sawyer loved Jasou, he said serving with him could be trying.

“That dog tested my patience daily. He barked in the car constantly,” Sawyer said.

Jasou may have barked enough to make casual conversation with other officers difficult, but he loved to be out in public too, Sawyer said.

“At Ferry Beach, he was just another dog chasing a tennis ball, Sawyer said.

As they train dogs in weekly exercises, he and Chard said there is no lack of inventiveness for trying to throw a dog off the scent of drugs.

Some drugs, like marijuana and heroin, are distinctive, he said.

“Heroin smells like vinegary, dirty socks,” Sawyer said.

Coffee, onions and garlic are commonly used to try and confuse a dog sniffing for drugs, as are fabric softener sheets, Chard said.

Sawyer said one of his favorite busts came when Jasou found crack cocaine concealed beneath a carpet under a heating unit drug agents had pulled apart. Although agents had been very thorough and were convinced there were drugs to be found, Jasou confirmed the value of a K-9 team, Sawyer said.

As he begins the process of finding and training a new partner, Sawyer said he wants a sociable dog who is ready to work.

“I find I have more patience with my dog than with people,” he said.

Staff writer David Harry can be reached at 282-4337, ext. 219