West Penn's Police Chief Brian Johnson, Sgt. Jason Lorah, and German shepherd K-9 officer Gunner, paid a visit to Shull-David Elementary School Tuesday afternoon to demonstrate the unit's search and apprehension skills for students.

According to third- grade teacher Colleen Hoppes, the elementary students recently learned about police officers working in the community."It brings the story to life to have kids witness it firsthand," Hoppes said. "It's one thing to read about it. It's another to see it."Second- through fourth-graders sat attentively on the auditorium floor while Johnson spoke to the group about the special abilities 2-year-old Gunner was taught before becoming part of the area's only K-9 unit."His commands are in English, German and Dutch," said Johnson. "Gunner's job is to find drugs and apprehend suspects. It's all a big game to him. He knows if he finds a certain item he gets rewarded," Johnson said. "He just loves to play."The German shepherd weighs roughly 100 pounds and was imported from Holland when he was a puppy. Gunner can run up to 30 miles an hour and jump up to 6 feet high over a fence, according to the chief.Johnson became a certified dog handler after completing a certified research program through the Drug Enforcement Agency before acquiring the four-legged officer. "He is my dog, He's part of the family."Gunner is expected to retire after a maximum of eight years on the West Penn force.Being the single K-9 unit, the partners cover long stretches of routes 309, 443 and 895 in their jurisdiction.Johnson said 75 percent of their responsibilities are traffic enforcement. "We stop 300 to 400 cars a month," he told the students.Johnson and Gunner make three sweeps around a suspected vehicle during the standard procedure, two in one direction and one pass in the opposite direction. If Gunner alerts even once it counts as reasonable suspicion and the vehicle can then be warranted for a search.The students asked several questions about Gunner and being a police officer, from the amount of space in the cruiser for the dog to whether Johnson has ever used his stun gun."Does Gunner have a bullet-proof vest?" asked one student."Yes he has one, he was trained with it but he doesn't wear it all the time," Johnson answered. Gunner's vest was donated through HOWL, with support of the township, according to the chief.Gunner demonstrated his superior olfactory talents when the chief hid "dope" on stage before unleashing the dog for a search.After finding the stash, Lorah put on a "bite sleeve" and let the students see how Gunner handles a criminal suspect."By law we have to give three warnings, then by the third he'll go after them," said the chief."A dog is lucky to have one bite in his career," Johnson assured the students. "When people hear you're sending in a dog, they usually just give up."