The Contra Costa County Office of the Sheriff’s Canine Unit has existed since 2002.  Five canine teams (dog and handler) are currently working in the county. Four are assigned to the unincorporated areas of Contra Costa County, and one is assigned to the City of Lafayette.

After the canines are purchased by the Office of the Sheriff and matched with a Deputy Sheriff, they begin extensive training as a team. This training is ongoing and continues throughout the teams’ careers.

The canines are cross-trained, which means they are trained to detect human odor and narcotics. Human odor detection constitutes trailing, area searching, building searching, article searching, and apprehension. Narcotics detection is the ability to detect and locate narcotics and illicit drugs. Several canine teams will soon implement training on explosives and firearms odor detection.

The canines live and work with the handlers they are assigned to until they retire from service.