Meet San Juan County Sheriff’s Office newest K-9

MONTICELLO, Utah (ABC4) — There’s a new sheriff in town… and her name is Nyx.

On Thursday, June 12, the San Juan County Sheriff’s Office added another member to their team. After two months of training, Nyx and her handler Deputy Payton Palmer successfully completed a course that certified the duo to serve in the K-9 department. The team hit the streets late last week.

“We’re excited to have this dynamic duo on board and look forward to the important work they’ll be doing in patrol and keeping our communities safe,” San Juan County Sheriff’s Office said in a social media post.

According to Utah DPS, patrol dogs, like Nyx, are trained on common K-9 “capture” philosophies including commands to find, bite, and bark. K-9s are also trained on how to disengage on command and to discriminate between a hostile suspect and a surrendering one.

The team was certified through the Utah Department of Public Safety’s Peace Officer Standards and Training (POST) program. In the K-9 course, officers are trained how to handle scenarios involving patrol, narcotics, cadaver, explosives, search and rescue, and even SWAT.

While DPS charges out-of-state officers a fee to take the course, Utah-based teams, like Nyx and Palmer, are able to take the 8-week course free of charge.

San Juan County Sheriff’s Office reminded residents that Nyx is a working K-9 and not a pet. They ask that you request permission from Deputy Palmer before trying to pet her.