By Giles Morris
Daily News Staff

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Rhinelander’s finest are hoping to add a four-legged friend to their law enforcement team. Chief Mike Steffes, who served six years as a canine handler in Beaver Dam, has initiated a community fundraising campaign that he hopes will cover the $16,000 cost of adding a police canine unit to the RPD staff.

The fundraising drive was approved by the city’s Protection of Persons and Property (PPP) committee on Wednesday evening. Steffes said a canine unit will help to make the city’s police force more efficient.

“It could help us solve a lot of cases and make us more efficient,” Steffes said. “When we arrive at a burglary scene, for example, a dog can clear a building in a matter of seconds because of its sense of smell and hearing, whereas an officer would have to search the building room by room and expose themselves to danger.”

According to Steffes, canine units are extremely efficient in the detection of contraband, conducting searches, and even tracking people because a dog’s sense of smell is over 100 times more sensitive than a human’s and their hearing is up to eight times as powerful.

Steffes is a strong believer in the effectiveness of police canine units and has been looking for a way to add one to Rhinelander’s department since his arrival.

“I’ve been reviewing it ever since I came here in 2006,” Steffes said. “I was the canine handler in Beaver Dam for six years and I have a first-hand knowledge of what a dog can do.”

Steffes cited an instance in which his dog located a 4.5 pound stash of marijuana in a car that he stopped for a routine traffic violation.

The Beaver Dam police department also used a private fundraising drive to fund their canine unit and Steffes believes the effort can add valuable resource to the city without contributing to the tax burden.

“What we’re trying to do is acknowledge how important citizen input it,” Steffes said. “I’m open to any ideas the citizens have in terms of what we could and should be doing. We don’t want to put an extra tax burden on the community.”

Steffes said the $16,000 of funds would cover the cost of the dog, the cost of training an officer, support costs for maintaining the dog, and various incidental costs like veterinary care. Steffes said the department is soliciting in kind donations in the form of food and medical care in addition to monetary contributions.

All police canines must display proper physical/mental abilities and a temperament necessary for policy duties. Police dogs are trained in protection, building searches, and tracking. The dogs may also be cross trained in narcotics, explosives, cadaver or even arson detection. The dog would most likely be purchased from Steinig Tal, a nationally certified police dog training center in Cambellsport.

“Both of our dogs in Beaver Dam went through the academy and both dogs were excellent on the street,” Steffes said. “There’s also the added benefit that we could return there for further training in the future.”

According to Steffes, all Rhinelander police officers will have the opportunity to sign up and try out for the canine handler position. A canine’s handler is the officer that trains the canine and spends the majority of their life with the dog. The dogs are usually raised as house pets with the handler’s family when off duty, a practice that helps socializes the dog to the general public.

Steffes said the dog can be a useful in community outreach also, as he regularly attended school and community functions during his time as a canine handler.

To support the RPD’s effort to add a canine unit contact Chief Steffes of the Rhinelander Police Department at (715) 365-5300.

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