He’s still living his dream

COLFAX — Sgt. Keith Cooper was ready to give up on the Whitman County Sheriff’s Office K-9 responsibilities when his German shepherd, Unix, died from cancer in May at just 9 years old.

“I didn’t want to do it anymore,” he said.

A police dog, after all, becomes more than a work partner or a tool to find drugs. Someone in Cooper’s position spends all day with the dog, drives with the dog for 40-50 hours a week in the car, and takes the dog home with him every day after work.

“I spend more time with my dog than with my wife and kids,” he said.

But Cooper decided he would rather quit on his own terms.

That is why Cooper joined up with his new 15-month-old German shepherd K-9, Lilly. She became certified after eight weeks of training and recently graduated from the Washington State Patrol Narcotics K-9 training program in Olympia.

To pass the program, which is offered free by the state, Lilly had to perform three different searches — a building, vehicle and open-field search — where she had to find methamphetamine, heroin and cocaine. She aced the test, finding all of the drugs, Cooper said.

Lilly is the third dog Cooper, a 13-year veteran, has trained, and he was responsible for bringing the K-9 program back to Whitman County when he started working there. He said Whitman County had a K-9 officer for a long time before Cooper joined the agency, but when the sheriff and other employees left, so did the K-9 program.

After Cooper was hired, he went to work researching how to restart the K-9 program, and the sheriff’s office was lucky enough to receive its first dog for free.

Cooper said he likes to work drug cases, and a K-9 dog’s nose gives law enforcement a crucial advantage because their sense of smell is thousands of times stronger than a human’s. If officers had to search a giant warehouse full of items for drugs, it would take them hours, or even days. A dog can cut that search down to a 16th of the time, Cooper said.

“To see the capabilities of what they can do is amazing.”

The right kind of police dog will have a “high prey” and “high hunt,” Cooper said. That means the dog is willing to search for something for a long time because it knows it will be rewarded with a prize. Much like an officer works for a paycheck, a dog like Lilly will work hard for a chew toy.

In 2012, Cooper and his K-9 performed the most memorable bust of his career when he worked with the U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency to find 30 pounds of meth and 10 pounds of cocaine in Colfax. He received a certificate of appreciation from the U.S. attorney’s office for his efforts.

Cooper said he is living out his childhood dream. When he was young, he saw a K-9 officer and immediately knew that is what he wanted to do with his life.

“It’s something I’ve been interested in ever since I was a kid,” he said.

Kuipers can be reached at (208) 883-4640 or akuipers@dnews.com.