A Calgary police officer has expressed his regrets after a video emerged of him kicking his canine partner because it was barking at a “dynamic” firearms call..The video – posted to Instagram by @calgaryevents on Wednesday night – shows several police officers in a neighbourhood. The dog, a German shepherd, is shown barking and in response, the canine officer gives it a good kick..Supt. Ryan Ayliffe said the officer involved immediately expressed regret and “it will not happen again. There was no intent to hurt the animal,” he said..“It’s not what they’d do again. His behaviour will not be repeated.”.Alyiffe said canine officers in those type of dangerous situations are trained to first use voice commands to silence their dogs and if that doesn’t work to use their leash..“Kicking the dog is not acceptable,” he said..Numerous formal complaints over the officer’s action have been filed and the Calgary Police Service is reviewing the incident..“This is not standard procedure. He was trying to silence the dog in the moment,” Ayliffe told a Thursday press conference..“The response in a high stress incident was to strike the dog once. The dog was not injured. It was a mistake and all of us regret it.”.Officers were called to a firearms incident for the call. Known in police parlance as a “Code 300”, the Tac-Team, canine units and a negotiator were all involved..Temperatures at the time were in the low -20Cs and the officer and the dog had been outside for four hours. The officer has been with the canine unit for six years and the dog, five..Ayliffe said the officer was on “inside containment” and “silence is part of concealment..“The officer can’t afford to give away their position,” he said..Ayliffe said he would not describe the incident as “animal abuse..“We recognize there are significant public concerns. None of us like the look of the video. It doesn’t look good at all,” Ayliffe said, asking people to remember it doesn’t show the whole context of the incident..“It’s important we acknowledge the incident and work with the handler (to ensure it doesn’t happen again).”.He said, at the moment, the officer and dog will remain on duty as there is “not a concern they can’t perform their duties. I’m convinced it won’t happen again.”.Ayliffe refused to release the name of the dog, saying it would identify the officer..The investigation into the call that brought police to the scene is ongoing.
A Calgary police officer has expressed his regrets after a video emerged of him kicking his canine partner because it was barking at a “dynamic” firearms call..The video – posted to Instagram by @calgaryevents on Wednesday night – shows several police officers in a neighbourhood. The dog, a German shepherd, is shown barking and in response, the canine officer gives it a good kick..Supt. Ryan Ayliffe said the officer involved immediately expressed regret and “it will not happen again. There was no intent to hurt the animal,” he said..“It’s not what they’d do again. His behaviour will not be repeated.”.Alyiffe said canine officers in those type of dangerous situations are trained to first use voice commands to silence their dogs and if that doesn’t work to use their leash..“Kicking the dog is not acceptable,” he said..Numerous formal complaints over the officer’s action have been filed and the Calgary Police Service is reviewing the incident..“This is not standard procedure. He was trying to silence the dog in the moment,” Ayliffe told a Thursday press conference..“The response in a high stress incident was to strike the dog once. The dog was not injured. It was a mistake and all of us regret it.”.Officers were called to a firearms incident for the call. Known in police parlance as a “Code 300”, the Tac-Team, canine units and a negotiator were all involved..Temperatures at the time were in the low -20Cs and the officer and the dog had been outside for four hours. The officer has been with the canine unit for six years and the dog, five..Ayliffe said the officer was on “inside containment” and “silence is part of concealment..“The officer can’t afford to give away their position,” he said..Ayliffe said he would not describe the incident as “animal abuse..“We recognize there are significant public concerns. None of us like the look of the video. It doesn’t look good at all,” Ayliffe said, asking people to remember it doesn’t show the whole context of the incident..“It’s important we acknowledge the incident and work with the handler (to ensure it doesn’t happen again).”.He said, at the moment, the officer and dog will remain on duty as there is “not a concern they can’t perform their duties. I’m convinced it won’t happen again.”.Ayliffe refused to release the name of the dog, saying it would identify the officer..The investigation into the call that brought police to the scene is ongoing.
