K9 Magnum joins the force

Ashley Hunter
ECB Publishing, Inc.

The newest addition to the Jefferson County Sheriff's Office doesn't wear a badge or even walk on two legs – rather, the newest addition is one who walks on four paws and is still less than two years old.
K9 Magnum and his handler, Deputy Trevor Boland, returned from their training in south Florida on August 31, and have been using this month to acclimated to their new responsibilities at the Jefferson County Sheriffs Office.
Bringing Magnum to the JCSO began much earlier this year, however, when Dep. Boland informed Sheriff McNeill of his interest in becoming a K9 handler.
Jefferson County's Sheriff McNeill was favorable towards the idea, but the price of obtaining a K9 and continuing the training for dog and handler alike can be costly, and was not an item that the JCSO currently had room for in their budget.
Not one to readily back down, Dep. Boland (with the support of Sheriff McNeill) began raising the funds that would be required up-front for the purchase of a K9 and the training requirements.
After inquiring with other small agencies on how they went about raising the funds for their first K9, Dep. Boland began contacting local business and plantation owners on receiving donations for the JCSO's future K9.
The work Dep. Boland put into the fundraising venture ultimately proved successful, and on Monday, Aug. 6, he was in South Florida to begin his training as a K9 handler.

The majority of his training, Dep. Boland says, was records keeping and learning how to bond and work alongside Magnum.
On August 31, Dep. Trevor Boland and Magnum returned from their training as the K9 Unit at the Jefferson County Sheriff's Office.
A Belgian Malinois, Magnum is about a year and a half old, so still very much a puppy who will still receive plenty of future training exercises in order to hone his abilities and improve his performance as a working dog.
Prior to Dep. Boland's arrival in south Florida, Magnum received approximately a month of training under the Southern Coast K9 trainers in New Smyrna, and then the time between Aug. 6-Aug. 31 was filled with even more training – but now along side his new handler.
“There's a lot to it. It's not just, you get a dog and turn it loose. A lot of people think that this is the way this works – that they give you a dog that's already trained and you go,” said Dep. Boland. “We've got to keep continually training – he's still a puppy and he's still got a lot of growing to do.”
Being the handler in a K9 Unit is more than just a title Dep. Boland gets to show off – his responsibilities at the sheriff's office and to the community have grown.
“I've got to focus on him, make sure he's doing his job right and he kinda keeps me in line as well,” said Boland. “It's not just me anymore, it's me and him.”
Even though Dep. Boland and Magnum now make up the only K9 Unit within the JCSO, some things have also not changed, said Boland.
“I'm still a deputy sheriff; I've just added a task with obtaining a K9 now. My responsibilities have grown, but I've gained a partner. We're just going to work as a team to keep the community safer – that's our main goal as a K9 unit,” said Dep. Boland. “My responsibilities have grown and it's a lot more responsibilities, but our number one responsibility is still to keep this community safe.”
As for his future hopes, Dep. Boland would like to see more K9 Units come into the JCSO so that every shift has a dog, and he believes that K9 Magnum also has the ability help the agency bond with the community they serve.
“A K9 Unit can be a bond between the community; everybody likes dogs,” said Dep. Boland. “Hopefully, with the sheriff's office having a K9 now, we can build a better repertoire with the good people of the community.”
In addition to working to keep the roads, schools, homes and businesses of Jefferson County safe, citizens may spot Magnum and Dep. Boland out representing Jefferson County at community events.
Magnum is friendly, but he is also a highly-training working animal.
Like any working dog, don't pet him when he is in work-mode and always ask Dep. Boland if you can pet Magnum if they are present at community events.
“You can pet him, you just need to ask the handler first,” said Dep. Boland.
Dep. Boland and K9 Magnum are far from the first K9 Units that have operated within the JCSO – in past years, former JCSO Deputy Sheriffs Logan Wilcox and Kevin Tharpe have also been involved in K9 Units.