The Lake County Sheriff’s Office announced Wednesday they are adding two additional canines, bringing their total number of canines to 10, and are asking for students to enter a naming contest.
Lake County Sheriff’s Office Deputy Chief Christopher Covelli said the sheriff’s office is in the final process of selecting the newest canines, which will be male German Shepherds between the ages of 18 and 24 months.
Covelli said that the current canines — Axel, Boomer, Danno, Dax, Duke, Echo, Ryker and Tera — have a proven track record of success in the Lake County community.
“Combined, they locate missing people, fleeing suspects, numerous discarded firearms or other evidence, hundreds of pounds of illegal drugs, sniff for explosives, and search for illegal digital evidence,” he said.
The sheriff’s office has added five new canines to their canine unit in 2022 so far.
The Lake County Sheriff’s Office is continuing its tradition of asking for help in naming its two newest colleagues.
Lake County youth currently enrolled in kindergarten through senior year of high school are invited to participate.
Public, private and homeschooled students in grades K-12 are invited to participate.
Children must have the permission of their teacher, school or parent.
One entry per student is allowed per dog. The winning name will be selected by the Lake County Sheriff’s Office.
Students who select the winning name will be invited to participate in the swearing-in ceremony for the canines.
Name submissions are due by 12 p.m. on September 9, the sheriff’s office said. Those interested in participating can enter here.
“Our canines are an incredibly valuable asset to everyone who lives or works in Lake County. Our goal is to have at least one of our canines on duty 24 hours a day, seven days a week, to assist our sheriff’s deputies and municipal partners,” Sheriff John D. Idleburg said.
“I am very excited to again ask our youth to participate in the naming of our two newest canines and I look forward to seeing their selections,” Idleburg added.