SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. – K9 officer Quatro retired from the South Lake Tahoe Police Department (SLTPD) Thursday after serving on the force for 6.5 years.
During the department’s annual awards ceremony, Quatro’s service was recognized. He has assisted numerous other agencies, confiscated $50,000 in cash, intercepted an envelope with drugs headed to a prison inmate, and assisted his trainer Officer Matt Morrison numerous times while on duty.
Eight-year-old Quatro will continue living with the Morrison family but will no longer head to work at the lake.
Officer Morrison got Quatro from Slovakia when the dog was just 18-months old. They went through a five-week-long handler’s course and since then, 16 hours a month for continued training. Morrison said the continued training makes law enforcement dogs non-deadly as they work on how to bite when needed, and how to turn off the attack on command.
SLTPD plans to replace Quatro and team the new dog with a new officer partner.
“The next dog will have big paws to fill,” said SLTPD Detective Scott Crivelli as he honored Quatro during the ceremony.
The department currently has only one K9 until the new one arrives. Rikki is partnered with Sgt. Jason Cheney.