Dogs add bite to security at hospital

We usually associate patrol dogs with law enforcement or prisons.

But canine security officers have been protecting Banner Health hospitals in the valley since 1992, and Banner Thunderbird Medical Center in Glendale since 1995.

"They are a very good public relations tool, as well as a deterrent,"" said Banner Thunderbird and Estrella security director Richard Ortiz. "If we have a hostile individual, just the presence of the dog changes their attitude."

Three dogs work between Thunderbird and Estrella, and there is one dog in each hospital at Banner Good Samaritan and Banner Desert Samaritan.

Three dogs work at Banner Thunderbird because of the hospital's large size, and its recent expansion project.

"We're being proactive in providing safety to the physicians, staff, patients and visitors,"" Ortiz said.

Rocky the German shepherd dog and Belgian Malinois dogs Tara and Freiga, along with their unarmed handlers, are a formidable presence patrolling Banner's West Valley hospitals.

Wearing their own security badges and photo identification, the dogs and their human partners can be seen riding elevators, walking hallways and patrolling the emergency department.

The canine security teams have also recently received specialized training in bomb detection, Ortiz said, "to step it up a bit."

The dogs and their trainers underwent explosives ordnance detection, making the canine teams certified to detect 20 known chemicals, as well as bombs both inside the hospital or in the community if requested by law enforcement.

"We could do shared services (with police departments)," Ortiz said.

Having the teams trained to detect bombs made sense because hospitals are considered a terrorist target, Ortiz said.

"We found out after 9/11 that hospitals are soft targets," Ortiz said. "And we have had a couple of suspicious packages."

Besides bomb detection, the security dogs are trained in patrol and to bite on command if needed.

The dogs were purchased from overseas sources, already trained for security work. Rocky was imported from Czechoslavakia and the Belgian Malinois came from Holland.

Each of them cost about $9,500, which included their initial security training. The handlers, though, were responsible for the dogs' obedience training, which Ortiz said accounts for 51 percent of their training.

After six years of security work, the handlers can purchase their dogs for $1, when the dogs are ready for retirement.

Rocky was recently called on to assist the Phoenix police with a search for a gunman who was pursued into the hospital.
Their specialized training, and the nature of their work, excludes them from the feel-good work done by the hospitals' pet therapy dogs. The Thunderdogs, as they are called, provide pet therapy to patients and staff.

So, when the security dogs are on patrol, they can initially be mistaken for the therapy dogs.

In fact, the security dogs' handlers have to tell dog-loving hospital visitors not to pet the dogs.

Instead, they give out their dogs' trading cards featuring a photo and information about the dog.

The teams are inseparable both at work and at home. The dogs live with their handlers and their families.

"It's fun taking your best friend to work," said Albert Martinez, handler of Tara, age 5. "And it's great to help people when needed."

Glenn Alderman, whose canine partner is Rocky the 4½-year-old German shepherd, is a veteran military and law enforcement dog handler who welcomed the chance to be teamed with a dog in a hospital setting.

"I'm amazed that we have really come to this point in security," Alderman said.

When Rocky isn't working, though, Alderman said he becomes a regular dog at home.

"When we get home and I take his collar off, he runs around the house and barks at people walking by outside," Alderman said. "He's a typical dog until we come to work."

Joy Slagowski may be reached at 623-876-2514 or jslagowski@yourwestvalley.com.