Escaped into the forest

Tough training for police dogs on duty

Exceptional situations are simulated during training - police dogs are prepared for official missions from an early age.

(Bild: Christian Schulter)

Whether murder, drug offense or explosives discovery - the police's four-legged sniffer dogs are trained for difficult cases. More than 200 service dogs throughout Austria have undergone special training. In the middle of training in Eisenstadt, the alarm went off - manhunt, trafficker arrested!

As with humans, noise or fire can cause stress in dogs. In order to react correctly in exceptional situations, police dogs undergo special training once a month. Young sniffer dogs have to attend lessons every two weeks on average. "Our four-legged colleagues should get used to difficult situations, as can be the case during operations," explain the professionals from the service dog squadron. The last training session took place at the provincial fire service headquarters in Eisenstadt.

Deployment under distraction
"Our service dogs were prepared at the fire department school for what is known as the Large Security and Order Service, or GSOD for short. All of the exercises focused on distraction situations caused by noise, fire and heat," says regional trainer Jochen Berghöfer. The district inspector belongs to the service dog station of the Zemendorf police station. Other Burgenland bases of this type are located in Königsdorf, Bernstein and Frauenkirchen. A total of 25 four-legged friends are on duty under the auspices of the provincial police directorate.

For police officers with their four-legged colleagues, the area of the fire department school in Eisenstadt offers a tailor-made training ground. All kinds of scenarios can be tested.

(Bild: Christian Schulter)

Animals must feel comfortable
Across Austria, 242 service dogs have undergone special training, including eight personal detection dogs, 88 narcotics detection dogs, 45 explosives detection dogs, 18 arson detection dogs and 17 cadaver and blood detection dogs. 46 loyal companions at the side of their "masters" show off their skills as alpine rescue dogs. The police have been working with four-legged companions since 1908.

"The training of service dogs has changed significantly over the past 30 years," says the Ministry of the Interior. The focus in training is on rewards. "The same process has taken place in human education. Dogs only learn well when they feel comfortable - just like humans," says an experienced officer. The tasks of service dogs are varied. The clever animals can react at lightning speed. This was demonstrated by the case of a tugboat. The alarm was triggered in the middle of training in Eisenstadt.

22 refugees in the cargo hold

At around 10.30 a.m., officers noticed a suspicious van coming off the S31 from Mattersburg and onto the south-east highway towards Vienna. The police followed the Mercedes Vito with a Hungarian license plate. The pursuit continued from the junction of the A3 near Eisenstadt to Müllendorf.

Suddenly the van stopped, the driver jumped onto the road and ran into the forest in the Leitha Mountains. There were 22 refugees in the cargo area. Most of the migrants - probably from Syria, Turkey and Afghanistan - were in poor health.

 

There were 22 refugees in this black Mercedes Vito - most of them in a poor state of health.

(Bild: Christian Schulter)

Investigator on four paws confronted smuggler
The escaped smuggler triggered the manhunt. The alarm went off during police dog training at the provincial fire brigade headquarters. Officers with their four-legged sniffer dogs set off on the search. An investigator on four paws followed the scent with determination and quickly tracked down the trafficker.

This police dog tracked down the fugitive smuggler and the 23-year-old suspect is in custody.

(Bild: Christian Schulter)

The public prosecutor's office in Eisenstadt ordered the Syrian (23) to be taken to prison. There was a risk of escape and risk of committing a crime. Further investigations into deliberate endangerment of the public are underway.