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Mountain View Police Department
1000 Villa Street
Mountain View, CA 94041
650-903-6344
Directions & Map
Hours
General Business:
8 a.m. - 5 p.m. (Mon.-Fri.)
Walk-in Crime Reports:
7 a.m. - 7 p.m. (7 days)
Submit your questions, suggestions, compliments,concerns, or track your existing request online.
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MVPD has one of the longest-running K9 programs in Northern California. Our first service dogs, Alf and Ox, joined the department in 1961.
Police dogs are one of the most effective and diverse tools used in policing. Dogs have a keen sense of smell and hearing, making them a valuable partner to a police officer. A police dog will respond to noise from 140 yards, compared to about 40 yards for a human. Their speed allows them to overtake a person running. Besides being terrific companions, they save time for our officers, reduce the number of officers needed for a search, they perform more thorough searches, and they help keep our officers and the community safe during the apprehension of dangerous criminals.
Mountain View Police Department K9 Teams
We purchase dogs when they're about two years old—all German Shepherds (except for one Rottweiller). Except for a brief period in the 1960s, we have imported all of our dogs from Europe (Germany, Holland, Czechoslovakia), because of strict breeding standards.
Tino and Officer Thomas tracking.
Tracking and searching make up most K9 deployments. A K9 team goes to work only after successfully completing 160-hours of basic training, narcotic detection training, and obtaining state certification. When a service dog retires, the city relinquishes ownership to the officer so that the dog can live out his life as a pet.
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Tino
Testino vom Zirndorfer Gauner
DOB: October 5, 2000
Partner: Officer Scott Thomas
Tino is the oldest K9 assigned to the unit, having been a member since November, 2001. He excels at tracking and evidence work, in part because of his patient nature. He is MVPD's SWAT K9 and is often called to assist in drug detection with County narcotics teams.
Oles
Oles von Lunscholz
DOB: March 3, 2008
Partner: Officer Ricky Valenzuela
Oles, a German Shepard imported from Germany, has been a member of MVPD since January 2010. Oles is trained in tracking, area/building searches, evidence detection, handler protection, and narcotics detection.
Nash
Nash von der Zigeunerkuhle
DOB: October 30, 2008
Partner: Officer Pablo Donato
Nash has been a member of MVPD since January 2011. He graduated from the Canine Police Academy in December 2010, and is trained in evidence detection and building searches. He excels in tracking and currently holds a certification with Geargia K9 Tech for the fastest tracking record. He is very intelligent and highly motivated.
Questions?
Inquiry
650/903-6188
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I would like to have the Police Service Dog Program give a demonstration to my group or organization.
The Mountain View Police Department Police Service Dog Program must be diligent in promoting a safe environment for our community, preventing issues that may expose the City of Mountain View to unnecessary liability, and be fiscally responsible with our budget. Keeping those responsibilies in mind, we do not give public demonstrations in an uncontrolled environment such as a homeowner's association gathering, block party event, etc. We do not give public demonstrations to any group or organization not a part of the Mountain View community. For any questions you can contact Unit Coordinator Sergeant Dale Messimer at (650) 903-6344 ext. 1486.
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Can I ride along with a K9 officer?
Unfortunately, due to issues associated with the individual K9 vehicle's set-up, ride-alongs specifically with a K9 officer are not feasible.
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How does the dog stay cool in the car on hot days?
Although the K9 and handler work as a team, there are occasions when the dog is not required and must remain inside the vehicle. During these times, the vehicle's air conditioner is left on and the windows rolled up to cool the interior. Each handler carries a monitor on his/her belt which gives a constant reading of the interior vehicle temperature and sounds an alarm if a predetermined interior temperature setting is exceeded.
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I would like to donate canine bulletproof vests to your Police Service Dog Program.
Our police service dogs do not wear bulletproof vests due to the weight of the vest, added restrictions of movement, and overheating issues for the dog. We do appreciate your concern for the safety of our police service dogs.
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I would like to donate money, food or other items to the Police Service Dog Program.
The Mountain View Police Department Police Service Dog Program has an annual budget for food, veterinarian services, and other supplies. Each police service dog handler tailors his dog's diet to each individual dog's nutritional needs. We appreciate your generosity and community support, but we don not accept donations to our program.
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What does a K9 officer do?
K9 officers perform the same basic functions as a regular patrol officer (write tickets, handle calls-for-service, make arrests), but are also utilized for more specific calls such as tracking, building seraches, and narcotics detection.
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What special skills do the dogs have?
Currently, the dogs are cross trained and proficient in tracking, searching, and narcotics detection. Bomb detection is a specific skill typically handled by outside Federal agencies.
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Who owns the dog?
The dog is actually purchased and owned by the City of Mountain View, but lives at home with their assigned handler.
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