It's Georgia here, and we know dogs love car rides! These dogs in Manatee County are pretty excited for their helicopter rides...
In Manatee County, K-9's have been trained to fly in a helicopter. The Manatee Sherriff's Office say this is to get to those who need help in time. Also, that every second spent heading to parts of Myakka or Duette could cost valuable tracking time. Sgt. Steven says "We have a very unique county, large geographical county; the goal is to reduce response times."
Now nine of the agency's dogs are getting rides from the aviation unit. Sgt. Chenard says "We'd be able to land the helicopter here at the dispatch center and fly the dog out to the event and we'd have a 10 minute response time or less instead of an hour." So, this really does help save time. It has taken months getting the K-9's prepared for the helicopter lift off.
Sgt Chenard adds "We spent an entire day down at out hangers just getting our dogs used to getting in and out of the helicopter without the engine turned on. From there, we kind of elevated."
"The last thing we want to do is throw a dog in a helicopter and have it be a bad experience." The deputies work with the K-9's to help them get comfortable in their new surroundings. While they're high up in the sky, the deputies assure the K-9's it's alright and get them ready for work.
With some of the dogs, Sgt. Chenard said "It was like they were going on a Sunday car ride. Some of them were a little more amped and excited."
Aw, I love how the dogs are embracing the helicopter rides!