The K-9s of SWCSO Part 2: Arry

Carly Eversole, [email protected]

Sweetwater County, Wyoming – The title of “rookie” in the SWCSO K-9 team belongs to Arry, a 3-year-old Belgian Malinois who joined with handler Deputy Scott Morris in March of 2022. Although new to his role, Arry is already proving to be a valuable member of the team and his story is just beginning.

New Dog New Tricks – Previous K-9 deputies have come from countries such as Belgium or Germany and have been trained using a basic set of commands mostly in German, but Arry is different. This pup was born in Czechoslovakia and thus speaks a different language. Initially, this was not necessarily difficult but something new to overcome for Deputy Morris who states his previous K-9 used German commands. Arry has been very forgiving with the language barrier and has adjusted to the accent variation as Morris navigates through learning new commands.

Often law enforcement dogs are trained in different languages as command words differ from English words in sound eliminating the risk of confusion when telling a dog to go to work. When asked if the dogs would respond to anyone giving them commands and the dogs responding, deputies replied the dogs might eventually respond to a fellow handler in the department that they trust telling them to sit and stay, but generally, they first give their own handler a look as if asking for permission to listen to this new instructor. The risk of anyone on the street being able to send these dogs into attack mode simply isn’t a concern.

In addition to learning a new language with the pair, they have had to learn some new training as well, as Arry did not have full narcotics scent training when he was paired with Morris. Arry’s narcotics training began at the facility in Ohio where the dogs are purchased from with Morris being instrumental in developing his new skill. “Because this is my second dog, I got to be in on the process of introducing Arry to those scents…Arry is good, but he’s getting better, he’s young in his career and will continue to improve,” Morris explained. The team is an original pair meaning no previous handler had Arry prior to Morris getting him. This makes them unique among the K-9 department currently working on the force right now.

Deputy K-9s that work with Deputy Sheriffs at the department are all what is known as dual-certified patrol K-9 (fugitive apprehension and human tracking) and interdiction (narcotics). Using his nose is a big part of the job for these dogs, but the other big part is fugitive apprehension also known as “bite” or “attack”. Training and practicing biting for these dogs require volunteers to put on a very large jacket and pants combination that lessens the likelihood of teeth making their way through them, and allows the dogs to bite the appropriate areas of the body.

When dogs are given the command or even see a volunteer in a bite suit their personality changes. They are all business, motivated by the drive to protect their handler and subdue the perpetrator. Oftentimes, after being engaged in a bite situation the dogs require a bit of a cool-down time before resuming their normal friendly personalities. Unique to Arry is that his turnaround time is fast. He goes from T-rex to love bug almost instantly. Morris jokes, “We always say Arry will tear your arm off, then bring it back to you to pet him with it.”

Following a legend – As previously mentioned, Arry is not Deputy Morris’s first dog with the department. Deputy K-9 Huck was with Deputy Morris since 2018 before suddenly passing from complications due to an illness Huck had been battling. The sudden passing of Huck was something his handler, the Sheriff’s Department, and the community were not ready for, leaving some very big paw prints for Arry to fill. Huck was a 6-year-old German Shephard that began his career with former Sheriff’s Deputy Amanda Buller before being placed with Deputy Morris. Huck had over 250 deployments and was involved in removing hundreds of pounds of illegal drugs from the street. Morris spoke of losing Huck as similar to losing a human family member and it still hurts to this day.

Summary – Huck’s presence is still felt at the sheriff’s office, but it doesn’t overshadow the upcoming Arry. His already impressive skill set and loveable goofball personality have allowed Arry to quickly become a well-loved member of the team. The transition of going from a German Shepard to a Malinois is a notable one, but a positive one. “Maligators have one gear and that is GO. They are always at the end of the leash pulling, they love to work and they will go and go until they drop.”

Deputy Morris knew early in his career that he wanted to be a K-9 handler and states that he “loves it and wouldn’t want to do anything else.” Morris mourns the passing of Huck as expected but looks at Arry in great anticipation of his bright future.