The Police Dog Service Training Centre near Innisfail officially reopened on Wednesday and the celebration included a special ceremony to honour a Calgary police dog that was killed in the line of duty in 1969.
The PDSTC training centre breeds and trains police dogs that are then paired with a handler to work in the community.
A grand reopening ceremony was held at the facility on Wednesday afternoon followed by a canine demonstration.
Renovations to the facility include upgrades to the kennel building and training facilities and the agility field and public viewing area have been expanded.
A monument dedicated to fallen police service dogs is now featured more prominently and a second ceremony was held to add the name of a Calgary Canine unit member to the memorial.
Last year, the Calgary Police Service learned about the on-duty death of one of its police service dogs and say PSD Pharaoh died on October 19, 1969 after he fell off of a roof while searching for a suspect.
Officials say there was no record of the incident and that they became aware of Pharaoh’s death after his former handler, Constable Herb Craig, visited the memorial and noticed the dog’s name was not on the monument.
CPS archivists conducted extensive research to uncover the details of Pharaoh’s death.
A plaque on the National Police Service Dog Memorial was unveiled to honour PSD Pharaoh’s life and service to Calgarians and Constable Craig, Chief Chaffin and members of the Canine Unit attended the ceremony.
For more information on The Police Dog Service Training Centre, click HERE.
