OCEAN SPRINGS, Miss. (AP) — A Mississippi police department wants to declare its drug-sniffing dog as "surplus" so it can be sold.
The Ocean Springs police officer who works with the dog is being called up for military duty, The Mississippi Press reported.
Chief Mark Dunston said the 2 ½-year- old dog, Axel, would be better off going to a new handler. He said his department can't afford the $13,000 to $15,000 to train one of its officers for the role, and he doesn't want to spend money feeding the dog and keeping him as a pet while its current handler is away.
Dunston said he hopes to recoup some of the $9,000 his department paid for Axel, rather than simply giving the dog away to another department.
Dunston also said the dog's trainer, who specializes in training law enforcement K9 animals, strongly recommended Axel not be transferred back to the Ocean Springs Police Department after his handler returns.
"I thought about that," he said, "but according to the person who trained the dog, it's not a great idea to have the dog go from one handler to another, but it's really bad to have the dog go from one to another and then back to the first.
"It can make the dog go screwy and I don't want something with sharp teeth getting screwy," Dunston said with a chuckle.
After Axel has a new home, Dunston said Ocean Springs will rely on law enforcement agencies in Biloxi, Gautier, Jackson County and Pascagoula for assistance when a K9 unit is needed.