TROY, Mo. – People living in Troy will soon see a new face patrolling the streets.
The city's police department hired a 2-month-old German Shepherd named Murphy as its newest officer.
"He's very rambunctious, he's wanting to get down and run right now but I love his energy and I love his drive,” said Troy police officer Ryan Parker.
Training Murphy to sniff out crime in the community is Parker’s responsibility.
“It's my favorite thing to do and favorite part of the job, I get to take my best friends to work with me in the morning, it's just wonderful,” added Parker.
Besides catching criminals, Parker said having Murphy on the force will better connect officers with the community.
“It really helps break down barriers and gives us something to talk about when someone doesn't know how to approach law enforcement, because something that most people have in common is we love animals,” said Parker.
The love between Parker's two dogs Murphy and Nitro runs deep, because Nitro is Murphy's dad, something parker said will help make training a breeze.
“Just took a few days to get him potty trained, he's already there and hasn't had any accidents and doing very well with that, he's a very intelligent dog,” said Parker.
Detective Tony Stewart said training a police dog can sometimes cost more than $30,000 and since their K-9 program runs on donations community support is needed.
The department is also looking for new human officers.
If you’d like to donate or apply contact Troy Missouri Police Department.
