The RCMP’s police dog training centre has been plagued by staffing shortages, low morale and rundown facilities that pose health risks to officers and canines, an internal review says.
The evaluation of RCMP police dog services reveals numerous challenges for the program that supplies and trains four-legged helpers to protect VIPs, support emergency teams, and sniff out suspects and illicit drugs.
Reviewers looked at the governance and delivery of the force’s police dog services between 2018-19 and 2023-24, drawing on interviews and a survey undertaken in RCMP divisions and the training centre.
The evaluation found the dog services, which date to 1935 with the RCMP’s purchase of its first puppy, were valued by front-line members.
The RCMP has come to rely on its own breeding program due to prices and demand for German Shepherds.
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