Watertown K-9 officer retires after successful career keeping drugs off the streets

A four-legged officer has retired from the Watertown Police Department.

Bono, a narcotics K-9, will spend the rest of his years in comfort within the home of Watertown police detective Taylor Maertens.

During a work session on Monday, the council got an opportunity to meet Bono and thank him for his years of service and hard work.

“Throughout his career, Bono has been certified eight times,” said Chief of Police Tim Toomey. “It’s not easy. It’s a very strict protocol.”

Bono completed a total of 2,016 hours of training prior to retirement. He had been deployed more than 700 times. Last year, he searched 124 vehicles and seven buildings. Throughout his time on the force, he has helped pull narcotics off the streets.

“In 2019, a Watertown police officer conducted a vehicle stop for an equipment violation. Bono altered to illegal substances inside the vehicle. A quarter-pound of methamphetamine was located and taken off the streets,” Toomey said.

One of Bono’s most recent accomplishments was in April 2021. A vehicle stopped for speeding was searched, and Bono alerted his handlers to an illegal substance. Police found cocaine, a firearm and numerous rounds of ammunition within the vehicle.

“Bono’s excitement to get out and find illegal substances is unmatched,” said Toomey. “But everyone around the police department knows that the only thing Bono loves mores is to be petted and to get everyone’s attention.”

The Watertown K-9 program began in 2008. There have been five K-9 officers that have served. Bono started March 2014 and has had two handlers during his career.

Bono retiring means Sadie is the police department's only narcotics K-9. But thanks to an anonymous donation, a new dog will be purchased the first week of February for $6,500. The new K-9 will be either a German Shepard or a Belgian Malinois, which is Bono’s breed. The new dog and its handler will begin an intensive six-week training before the team can start working.

“Typically, you want to get a K-9 around the age of 2. That way, you get a little of that immaturity out of them. They pick up on training well right around that age,” said Maertens.

The new dog will be trained to detect powder narcotics like meth and cocaine, but not marijuana. The K-9s are taught to respond to commands in German or Dutch so that there are no accidental responses when English is spoken around them.

The Watertown Police Department does not train their K-9s to be attack or search dogs. Toomey explained that training the dogs for additional skills like criminal apprehension and tracking would take several more hours each month.

“The great thing about our dogs is that they are also community dogs. They do a ton of presentations at the schools and are friendly dogs,” he said.

The Watertown K-9s will assist the Codington County Sheriff’s Department by helping neighboring communities and schools.

For Bono, his future days will be spent learning to be an everyday dog and enjoying his trips to the park and downtown, where he can engage in one of his favorite activities – barking at the statues.

“Part of their training is to make finding that odor the most fun thing for them. So, it’s transitioning him from doing that to just having fun. So he’s got plenty of toys,” Maertens said.

This article originally appeared on Watertown Public Opinion: K-9 officer retires after successful career keeping drugs off streets