AUSTIN, Texas (AP) - Police officers in Austin will soon be trained to spot the difference between attacking and playful dogs in an effort to decrease the number of dogs they shoot.
The Austin American-Statesman reports (https://bit.ly/1Br2n0s ) that the department decided in the spring after several high-profile shootings to put all of its officers through a four-hour training course.
The department is spending $12,000 to train its 1,700 officers by the end of the month. Instructor Jim Osorio teaches the officers how to interpret a dog’s behavior. He also advocates non-lethal force against aggressive dogs, such as using batons, pepper spray or stun guns. There are even unarmed combat techniques to use against the dogs, which Osorio calls “hand-to-paw combat.”
“There are dogs at one-third of all homes,” said Osorio, who has trained about 2,100 officers in Texas. “First responders need to know how to react, how to read body language and how to protect themselves. It would be like sending a firefighter out that didn’t know CPR or a police officer who didn’t know how to do a traffic stop.”
Police in Leander and Round Rock have undergone similar training.
“I would like people to understand that we don’t have a thorough understanding of dogs,” said Leander Police Chief Greg Minton. “We’re trained to deal with violent and aggressive people.”
Minton mandated the training after one of his officers shot a German shepherd therapy dog in June 2013 while trying to serve a warrant at the wrong address.
Activists with the Texas Humane Legislation Network plan to lobby next year for all new police officers, sheriff’s deputies and constables to go through six hours of similar training.
“I think one of the most encouraging pieces of news is that agencies who haven’t experienced a dog shooting are now signing up for the training,” said Cindy Boling, an animal activist whose border collie, Lily, was shot by a Fort Worth police officer two years ago.
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Information from: Austin American-Statesman, https://www.statesman.com
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