With coffee, pastries and several doggie eye exams at a regional public-safety gathering, Milwaukie police last week celebrated the arrival of their newest canine partner, a 3-year-old German Shepherd named Yago.

Yago, who only arrived in this country from Germany on March 13, came with the name Jerry. Yago is a Spanish name derived from Hebrew and means “he who supplants,” but Hall couldn’t remember any conscious association when he thought of a new name.

“I was walking around my house on Sunday, and the name Yago just came to me, so I walked out to him, and it really seemed to fit,” Hall said, as Yago showed he’s already responding to his new name by perking up at the mention of it.

On May 24, Hall and Capt. Steve Bartol went to Von Grunheide Shepherds, a kennel in Snohomish, Wash., run by Suzanne Eviston, an area canine-handling police officer who specializes in German Shepherds from European bloodlines. Eviston also sold another dog to the Milwaukie Police Department. That dog, Jag, also a German Shepherd, was euthanized in December after being diagnosed with inoperable bone cancer.

Through the nonprofit Milwaukie Public Safety Foundation, led by City Councilor Dave Hedges, an emergency fund-raising campaign tapped into citizen support and raised nearly $15,000 in just a few months. MPD Chief Bob Jordan and City Manager Bill Monahan credited the hard work of citizen volunteers in realizing Yago’s purchase and training costs so quickly.

“The purchase of the canine is possible because of the outstanding and generous support of the foundation and community,” Monahan said. “Thanks to Dave Hedges for all the hard work he put in.”

Dr. Paul Scherlie from VCA Northwest Veterinary Specialists in Clackamas donates his time to check the eyes of public-safety dogs from around the region for glaucoma and other common ailments. Clackamas donated his time last Wednesday to check the eyes of public-safety dogs from around the region as officers chatted about their shared experiences with canine partners. In checking the dogs for glaucoma and other common ailments, Scherlie argued that the dogs’ good eyesight was as important as their sense of smell in helping officers.

Yago had to be isolated after he became excited to see so many dogs in one place. In attendance were Milwaukie Officer Billy Well’s drug-sniffing American Staffordshire terrier Shaka, Portland Police dogs/officers, and Portland Fire and Rescue Lt. Fabian Jackson’s arson-detecting Labrador retriever Lila.

With eight to 10 weeks of formal classes scheduled to start in September, Hall acknowledged that Yago, who already has a certification in advanced tracking, still has some training to do before he can chase down suspects. But on Yago’s renaming day, Hall and Yago, while patrolling Milwaukie Marketplace, pulled over a vehicle that had been reported as stolen.

As Yago barked in the police SUV, Hall described the suspects as compliant throughout the whole process. According to Hall, suspects are less likely to try to run when there’s a police dog in their midst.

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