Miko's death a lesson in police dogs' merits

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By Ken Sweet

Arizona Daily Star
Tucson, Arizona | Published: 06.02.2006

Miko was special.
The police canine could sniff out drugs as easily as run down a perp.
And probably most appropriately, Miko died Saturday night doing his job, just inches away from nabbing a man police say was a carjacker before the dog fell about 30 feet from an overpass.
It was a routine traffic stop, Officer Gary Schad said Thursday, speaking publicly for the first time about the events leading to Miko's death.
Schad released Miko when the man bolted from what was until then a routine traffic stop. After an extensive search, the man was not found.
"There was no way of calling the dog off in that short amount of time," Schad said.
With a suspect so close, police dogs are trained to go after that person to the very end. Schad said the man's choice to dive off the overpass was unpredictable. That Miko followed was not.
"They just don't know when to stop," Schad said. "They only know one person who is stronger than them, and that's their trainer."
The Schad family is an institution in the Service Dog Unit at the Tucson Police Department, providing a long line of dogs like Miko to the department.
Gary Schad has worked in the service-dog unit for 10 years. His father, Richard Schad, founded the unit in 1972 and worked in it until his retirement in 1987.
Together they trained seven German shepherds for police-dog work, spanning a quarter-century.
Gary Schad and his 11-year-old son, Austin, have had a police dog at home for the majority of their lives. Miko was the first to die unexpectedly.
"When I was 16, I would be my dad's decoy," Gary Schad said, talking about when he would dress up as a criminal for the dogs to attack during demonstrations.
The elder Schad from across the table joked about the beginnings of the unit.
"We flew on the seats of our britches," Richard Schad said. "We trained out of a book. Now it's a science. I don't know how we did it."
Richard Schad trained with his first dog, Major, along with five other police officers. Back then, he said, there wasn't even a police-dog force in Arizona.
The six-member force has grown to nine. Interest in the program also has grown exponentially.
"These dogs are often the face of TPD," Gary Schad said.
Getting onto the unit is a long and complicated process, Gary Schad said. Police officers need a minimum of five years on the force, but it is highly likely that an officer will have worked at least 10 years before being allowed to train a dog.
Although there is now a three-month training process to become a service-dog police officer, much more is needed. "Nothing takes the place of experience," Gary Schad said.
The Tucson Police Department has nine trainers in its more than 1,000-member police force.
Although Tucson started a service-dog unit in 1972, police dogs did not become as popular in police work until the early 1990s, said Sgt. Rod Mamero of the Payson Police Department, past president of the Arizona Law Enforcement Canine Association.
"They are such an effective tool," Mamero said. "Without a dog, we might have to rely on deadly physical force. You cannot call a bullet back once it has been fired."
Gary Schad said the Tucson Police Department traditionally gets its dogs from outside Arizona or the country.
When he was working as a dog trainer, Richard Schad said, he had one dog that was born and trained in Germany and only obeyed commands in German: "He took English suggestions."
German shepherds bred for police-dog work cost between $4,500 and $9,000 depending on the pedigree of the dog, Mamero said.
Miko, a 4-year-old German shepherd, was special for several reasons, Gary Schad said.
Among the reasons was Miko's training to sniff out narcotics and work patrol. A dual-purpose dog like that is rare.
"I don't know how you can put a price tag on a dog like Miko," Gary Schad said. "They don't exist. You cannot buy them."
Both Schads said that dogs get injured on the force occasionally.
In January 1995, a TPD canine named Dax was shot in the head by a robbery suspect trying to get away. Dax recovered and continued to serve on the force for several more years.
The decision to euthanize Miko was made after five veterinarians diagnosed his extensive injuries.
Miko was the first dog to die in the line of duty in Tucson in more than 20 years.
Plans are being made for a memorial service for Miko, but nothing has been scheduled, Gary Schad said.
Also, Gary Schad will in time get his fourth dog and then retire — just like his father.
Being a service-dog family is more than a part of the job. It is a lifestyle. The dogs always come home with the officers and a lot of training is done outside of regular hours.
"We put in a lot of personal time to train these dogs," Richard Schad's wife, Lissa, said. "This incident affected the whole family."
Even 11-year-old Austin said he wants to be the third-generation Schad to work with police dogs.
Gary Schad said with a smile he would like to see his son pursue something different.
"There's a lot guns and knives out there," Gary Schad said. "I kinda want to see him safe behind a desk."