The Newest Addition to the ZPD

Monday marks the three-month-anniversary of the shooting of Officer Mike Schiele and K-9 officer Bosco. While Bosco is continuing his recovery going to physical therapy three days a week in Columbus, Schiele travels an hour-and-a-half each day to train with his new K-9 partner Tino.

"Monday through Friday we train eight hours a day," says Schiele.

16-month-old German Shepherd Tino is already three weeks into his daily training with Officer Schiele and the two are becoming fast partners.

"From the time the handlers here on that dog’s his responsibility. We don’t touch it anymore so the dog learns to bond with him," says Steven Heater, head trainer Pine Grove Kennel.

With Schiele’s experience as a handler the trainers were able to quickly have the two working together practicing searching for drugs.

"First thing we do is teach it it’s odors of narcotics and then after that we teach it how to search and then we teach it how to indicate," says Heater. "When he smells that odor and he indicates his toy appears and he gets to play."

They also train the dogs wearing 80 pound bite proof suits. Some of the dogs are so strong they actually bite through it.

"We do a lot of muzzle work too, the dogs where a muzzle so you don’t have to wear the suit and we have had people get black eyes because they’ll punch you in the face with that muzzle," says Heater.

The trainers say Tino has the potential to be a very successful K-9 officer. And it seems like things are even going well between Tino and his future roommate Bosco, who he’s had a chance to meet.

"I haven’t had any problems so far, so I think Bosco will probably be a little bit upset the first time I go to work in uniform without him when I take Tino," says Schiele.

Schiele says Bosco should be happy in his role as a public relations dog, and they’re all ready for one thing…

"I’m looking forward to getting back to work," he says.

If everything goes as scheduled Schiele and Tino should be on patrol together in January.