Dog handlers

My whole heart's in this now. You train the dog, raise it, and then work with it. The K9's already a part of you, and you feel a responsibility.

A dog handler is usually assigned one or two dogs. But right now, we're short on people, so you sometimes have to work with three of them. That's hard to do. Every dog needs training and attention. Walking each one twice a day seems like it would be the easiest thing to do, but even if you walk each dog for only 20 minutes, 20 minutes multiplied by three dogs is an hour. Do that twice a day, and that's two hours a day spent just walking.

Only people who both love dogs and want to work with them can be part of this team. It’s a demanding job. Dogs have their own personalities, too.

The centre currently has about 30 dogs of different breeds: German, Belgian, and Swiss Shepherds, Cane Corsos, and even a Spaniel. Some of them were evacuated from Kherson. Yevhen, head of the dog training centre, explains: