COVINGTON CO., AL (WSFA) -
His name is Solo. He's a year old bloodhound.
A Virginia police officer at the International Bloodhound Training Institute trained Solo to exclusively track scents and people.
The Covington County Sheriff's office had a K-9 officer prior to Solo, but the 10-year veteran died last year of old age.
Covington Co. Sheriff Daniel Meeks says a tracking dog is an essential counterpart needed for human officers.
Solo's trainer says he can be used to track pretty much anyone.
"But they are not aggressive so we can use them on children, missing people and even violent criminals because there is no liability," International Bloodhound Training Institute Instructor Michael Thielen said.
"If we have an elderly person or a young child who's missing, it will really help in narrowing that find time down," Covington County Sheriff Daniel Meeks said.
These dogs are neither free nor cheap. But thanks to private and public donors, including the cities of Opp and Andalusia, the department didn't have to pay at all. The sheriff says he's very appreciative of their generosity.
Without the donations, Solo would have cost the sheriff's office $8,000.
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