Allegheny Co. Sheriff's Dept.'s New K-9 Gets His License From Treasurer's Office

PITTSBURGH (KDKA) -- The area's newest police dog got his license on Thursday.

It was a proud moment for the pup and his handler as the pair have spent their first week together getting used to being in the limelight.

At just 10-weeks-old, Ranger hasn't officially started his new job yet. He'll be part of the K-9 Unit of the Allegheny County Sheriff's Department. But, now that he has officially taken up residency here, Ranger visited the Treasurer's Office today to get his license.

Ranger is the only bloodhound police dog with the Sheriff's Department. The rest are German Shepherds.

His training has already begun. First up is learning scents.

"With a bloodhound, we do a lot of food reward," says Deputy Marie Watts, of the Allegheny County Sheriff's Department. "We do food reward with them. You know, basically use that nose to find the food, and that will eventually turn into a track."

No one anticipated how popular Ranger would become since his introduction to the county last week.

He won't actually be certified as a police K-9 until sometime this fall - late September.

But for now, he's just being cute, making new friends and learning there's a lot of pressure to being a member of the Sheriff's Department.

"Getting him used to my schedule, bringing him into work here, getting him house trained," said Deputy Jeff Belback, Ranger's handler. "I have him ringing a bell now, to make it outside. So he knows that that means."

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Here in Pennsylvania, every dog is required to have a license, and you have 30 days to get one. County Treasurer John Weinstein sees Ranger as a good way to remind everyone why it's important.

"Dogs become part of your family," said Weinstein. "If you lose your dog, we network this system with all of the local police departments and your tag number, all local police departments can help find your dog."

The fee for a license can vary here in Allegheny County, but the special thing about Ranger is, because he is a service dog, it's going to be free for a lifetime.