A K9 could be on duty in Rugby before the end of the year, according to an update on the planned acquisition of a narcotics detection and tracking dog provided by the Rugby Police Department to the Rugby City Council at its regular meeting Wednesday, Sept. 17.

Rugby Police Chief Scott Bommersbach said the department had decided on sourcing the Labrador from a West Fargo trainer, who had located a one-year-old yellow lab in Iowa that he said would be a good fit for the department’s needs.

“It’s a finished dog. He goes through all the initial stuff, but then it’s the dog learning the handler and the handler learning the dog and all the case laws that goes along with it,” Bommersbach said. “It’s a single purpose dog. Dual purpose would be biting, but we’re not going to do biting.”

He said the trainer has placed several dogs with area departments.

Bommersbach said if the dog is approved, it will be trained for two months, to be followed by a bonding period and a two to three week training session with the department’s K9 officer.

“If the dog is ready within this two-month time frame, I’d be going down in the end of November until the end of December for training. You have eight hours of training a day, but he works it with you so can be back home with family on weekends,” Officer Jessica Fjellanger said. “It will definitely help with work, so that way everybody else isn’t in a bind for 12 weeks. I think it will be beneficial. He was very informative, and watching him interact with the dogs and trainers, I just really respected it.”

Fjellanger said if any issues with the dog or her handling occur after the training, the breeder will bring them back for additional training at no charge. Bommersbach said the dog could be in Rugby as soon as November.

The total cost of the purchase and training will be $9,500, which was below previous estimates from a different breeder, according to Bommersbach.

He said the department has received donations to cover more than half of the cost of the K9 and training, and letters have been submitted to about 20 gaming sites to request donations.