
The Chatham-Kent Police Service has one police dog, Helix, who is a dual-purpose dog.
Helix is a German Shepherd who was born in Ontario and has West German bloodlines. Helix is particularly gifted in tracking and searching, but is also trained in the following areas:
- Obedience
- Open Search Criminal Apprehension/Stand-Off
- Agility
- Drug and firearm detection
- Article Searches
- Tactical Containment
The Chatham-Kent Police K9 Unit is deployed on patrol both during the day and night shifts. The canine officer with his police dog partner assists front-line officers and other investigative units of the Chatham-Kent Police Service with calls for service. The German Shepherd breed was chosen for their physical ability, strength, and intelligence. A strong temperament is very important as the dog is expected to perform in stressful situations.

Police dogs have many responsibilities. Their expertise includes tracking, agility, article searches, building searches, open searches, chase and apprehension, and handler protection. They are used to provide containment and to assist our Emergency Response Team. Our canine handler is on call twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week. All handlers must complete an extensive fifteen-week canine handlers’ course where the handler and dog learn as a team.
These are highly trained and assertive animals, and can interact with the public. The Canine Unit provides numerous public demonstrations and school presentations per year. These demonstrations allow us to showcase the abilities of our canine partner and inform the public of his importance. These animals have a huge responsibility to keep our members and the public safe.
The CKPS K9 Unit would like to extend its sincere thanks to Preferred Building Products in Chatham for their generous donation of building materials for PSD Helix’s kennel, as well as Petfood Warehouse and Nutram dog food for their continued support of the Chatham-Kent Police Canine Unit.