Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office Deputy Scott Burkard and his wife, Katie, didn’t initially understand why their Dutch shepherd, Finn, was barking strangely last week at their Festus home.
Burkard, who is partnered with Sheriff’s Office police dog Maro, had just fed Finn and Maro and made sure they had enough water, but after investigating Finn’s barking, he found Maro, a 12-year-old Dutch shepherd, dead in his kennel on Sept 15.
“(Maro) was out running around in the yard,” Burkard said. “I heard Finn barking, and I looked at the camera and I saw him lying weird. I yelled over the camera at him, and he didn’t move. I went to check on the dogs, and that is when I found him. My wife thinks (Finn) was trying to tell us what was going on.”
Burkard said on Sept. 18 that a veterinarian at the Jones Animal Health Clinic in Crystal City had not determined an official cause of death, although the doctor said Maro may have suffered a stroke.
“It is heartbreaking,” Burkard said. “That is your partner. Every day I went to work, he came with me. This is my third police dog with the Sheriff’s Office. They each had their own little thing. I can’t say one was better than the other. It is just your bond with your dog. It hurts.”
Burkard said he has worked for the Sheriff’s Office since 1998 and was first paired with a canine partner, a German shepherd named Link, in 1999. Then, Burkard was partnered with a Dutch shepherd named Tycoon in 2007. Both those dogs are dead.
Burkard, who is a master trainer with the North American Police Work Dog Association, said it is difficult to lose a dog.
“It is the first time my wife has dealt with something like this,” he said. “It has really bothered her a lot. We just miss him.
“This morning (Sept. 18), I went outside as part of my normal routine to let him run around a little bit before we went to work, and he wasn’t there. I have a lot of things reminding me of him, but he is not here.”
Burkard said Maro was considered a senior dog because of his age and issues with his hip. However, Maro was still active with the Sheriff’s Office.
Burkard said Maro was trained to detect narcotics, assist in apprehensions, search for people and perform other searches.
“We utilized him for everything,” he said. “Most of what he did was with narcotics. I could use him for narcotics sniffs and canine demonstrations. I could use him at all of the schools. I could let all the kids come up and pet him. He loved kids. He loved being petted. He was the perfect dog for public demos.”
Burkard said he and Maro had received awards from the Sheriff’s Office after helping locate people and for other accomplishments. He said Maro had hundreds of finds on narcotics searches and on numerous locations when tracking missing people or suspects.
Burkard said one narcotics find stands out due to the amount of illegal drugs Maro found.
“I was assisting another agency, and he kept hitting on a car door,” he said. “We took the door apart and there was more than 20 pounds of narcotics in the passenger’s side door. That was a pretty big find.”
Burkard said he likely will not be paired with a police dog again.
“I am to the point in my career that I think it is time to give the newer guys a chance to experience it,” he said. “I still get to be part of it as a master trainer; I just won’t be working a dog any longer.”
Spokesman Grant Bissell said on Monday that the Sheriff’s Office has no immediate plans to replace Maro, but the department may bring in a new police dog at a later time. He said on average it costs approximately $15,000 to purchase a dog and provide training for the canine and deputy partner.
The Sheriff’s Office currently has four active police dogs.
A bloodhound named Scout started working with Deputy Josiah Tegg on Aug. 26. That pair joined Deputy Derek Richard and his bloodhound partner Zeus; Deputy Josh Oesterreich and his Belgian Malinois-shepherd mix partner Bert; and Deputy Brad O’Donnell and his Belgian Malinois partner Murphy as part of the department’s canine force.
“We have to have the dogs,” Burkard said. “They are a big asset. From jail sniffs to vehicle sniffs to tracking lost subjects and felony suspects, there is a lot for them to do. On the public relations side of it, doing demos for schools, groups and organizations is something the dogs really like.”