Sheriff’s dog, Ekko, retires after 6 years of service

After six years of searching buildings for criminals and drugs, assisting in SWAT operations and catching bad guys, a police dog named Ekko will retire to some rest and relaxation. “He will spend his days playing, being pampered and taking some well-deserved naps,” a news release from the Spokane County Sheriff’s Office said. Ekko was born Sept. 1, 2006, started with the sheriff’s office in May 2008 and retired on March 1. He has been adopted by his handler, Deputy John Cook, and his family. During his career, Ekko conducted 80 building searches, 48 tracks, 44 “other” applications, 35 SWAT operations, 31 captures, 78 felony arrests, 15 misdemeanor arrests, and hundreds of narcotics searches and finds, the release said. Ekko and Deputy Cook were patrol-accredited in June 2008 and they received their narcotics accreditation two months later. In 2011, they began training with the Spokane County Sheriff’s SWAT Team and became the first sheriff’s K9 team to be cross-trained for SWAT operations.