Teddy, the warm-hearted, floppy-eared 8-year-old drug sniffing Golden Retriever and valiant member of the Carson City Sheriff's Office K9 squad for years, officially retires today.
Known for his gentle demeanor and love of tennis balls, Teddy has been adored by law officers, sheriff's office staffers, children and even the most unlikely folks — those who have had their vehicles searched — ever since he came on board as an 18-month old rookie sniffer.
Under the watch of his leader, Carson City Sheriff's Deputy Dan Ochsenschlager, Teddy will settle into retirement as a private citizen, adjusting to life away from his duties and the backseat of the K9 patrol vehicle. He will continue as a civilian with all the comforts provided to him as Ochsenschlager's family dog.
"Being the only floppy-eared dog, he's been great to have; kids love him, ladies love him and he likes the attention," said Ochsenschlager of his retiring partner.
At home he's one of the family and likes to go out on bike rides and weekend boating and camping trips. The only issue is Teddy does get antsy when he spends extended periods of time not working. Whenever that's been the case, he likes to destroy things inside the home, Ochsenschlager said.
"It may take some time. I'll probably bring him in now and then to help with the transition," he said.
Teddy's retirement comes on the heels of two young German Shepherds, Ivo and Hero, who have joined the Carson City K9 force and are currently in training. The three other K9s in the department are Ary, Tarzan and Rex.
Over the years, Teddy has done thousands of searches. Being a single-purpose passive dog, Teddy's only job requirement was to detect, with his nose, five drugs: marijuana, methamphetamine, cocaine, heroin and ecstasy. If there was a sniff positive for the drugs, Teddy would simply go for his reward, a squeaky tennis ball.
"He has great scent drive and he maintained it well over the years through training," said Ochsenschlager. Approximately 16 to 20 hours of training regimen is required each month for all K9s, where they are put into simulated situations to find drugs placed in tow-yard vehicles, backpacks, and empty fields.
"The training is more for the handlers but it does keep them sharp and has kept him in shape over time," said Ochsenschlager.
Teddy's age aside, which equals 49 human years, he's fit and healthy. He loves carrots, apples and bananas along with his dog food. Once a day Ochsenschlager would take him to a convenience store at 5th and Saliman where he would get a special treat of some kind. Teddy has come to expect that extra stop at Jaxsons because if Ochsenschlager forgets Teddy "starts to pout."
Sheriff Ken Furlong said the dog will be missed because of his friendly nature, especially among children and women, "who always seem to pay him the most attention."
Remarkably, Teddy even has admirers whom he's flagged for drugs. Ochsenschlager recalls many times where people who have gotten their vehicle sniffed for positive hits and subsequently searched, who want to pet the dog.
"He can sniff out drugs, and people have asked before and after the sniff and even in jail if they can pet him," said Ochsenschlager.
The dog is also known among local children through the DARE program. Gently Teddy as he's sometimes called, Ochsenschlager remembers breaking up a high school party at around 3 a.m. in Carson River Park. Seeing the kids wouldn't come out from hiding when he arrived, Ochsenschlager announced on his loudspeaker that he would release a police dog to find them.
The high school students came out of their hiding, walked up to Ochsenschlager and seeing it was Teddy said in defeat that had they known it was Teddy they would have kept hiding.
Another time Teddy and Ochsenschlager were at the high school and the dog became fixated on a truck. The dog circled it relentlessly and wouldn't take his eyes off of it. It turns out the truck belonged to the Carson High School tennis coach and what Teddy kept occupied were the dozens of tennis balls stashed inside.
On Wednesday morning, Ochsenschlager gave Sheriff Furlong a ceremonial $1 bill in exchange for the dog, something of official city folklore, but with a kibble of truth.
There is a process of releasing the dog from city services, said Furlong, jokingly, "and we're working on that now. The dollar will eventually be returned to the owner."
An official retirement party for Teddy will be Dec. 28.