To Sali the K-9, work with the La Plata County Sheriff’s Office is no more than play.
For such high-stakes work locating missing people, tracking down burglars and discovering hidden stashes of drugs, that’s really saying something.
Sali, a 3-year-old German shepherd-Belgian Malinois mix, has been working for the Sheriff’s Office for two years. After the retirement of two other police dogs, Sali is the only K-9 unit working in La Plata County, said Sgt. Michael Mohney, Sali’s handler.
That means his work is cut out for him – which is good for Sali, considering he likes what he does.
“Sali’s work is a cool service, but also it’s fun,” Mohney said. “Police dogs don’t even notice the difference. Police work is just a game for them, so they’re just having a blast.”
Mohney started working in the La Plata County Jail and made his way up through the ranks to a K-9 officer. In 2022, he was sent to a kennel specializing in police dogs in Michigan to adopt the newest member of the force.
Sali was originally born in Belarus and brought to the United States so he could serve on a police force. During the selection process, Mohney knew Sali was special as soon as he set eyes on him.
“There was Sali, he comes in and he just looked confident,” he said.
Mohney said one of the tests young potential police dogs undergo is a “boogeyman test,” wherein a person dressed in a bite-proof protective suit walks menacingly toward the dog. The test is to determine how a dog would react to a real-world threat, whether that be to try and aggressively attack the decoy or to run away from it – both undesirable traits in a law enforcement operation.
“As the decoy gets closer, they’ll start (hissing) to try to get the dog worked up,” Mohney said. “Sali’s just still staying there, like, ‘What the heck’s going on?’ But he was baiting the decoy to get a little bit closer, so that when he came up to him, he could bite him. That’s actually really smart. The dog was figuring that out.”
K-9 units are important assets for law enforcement agencies, Mohney said, largely because of their powerful sense of smell. That, alongside their trainability and zeal for performing tasks, allows their human counterparts to find things they would otherwise miss during operations.
For instance, on a burglary investigation in rural La Plata County that had stumped deputies, Sali found a new lead that led to the case’s solution.
“We had a big burglary case that was kind of a dead end,” Mohney said. “I was just like, ‘Well, let’s see what Sali can find,’ and we let him out, and he just kind of walked around nosing the ground.”
Sali found a USB-C charger at the end of the cul-de-sac the deputies were searching, Mohney said. From there, they found a trail of items that led to a small RV camper containing 18 stolen firearms and other items that the deputies had been looking for.
“I may be biased, but I give all the credit to Sali for that case,” he said. “We were able to close a huge case in like 11 hours.”
Sali is also certified in detecting elicit substances like meth, cocaine and heroine, Mohney said. He is trained to give a “passive alert” to deputies if he picks up a scent indicating any of those substances are nearby. It’s up for Mohney to pay attention to Sali, who has been trained to use his body language to communicate when he finds a scent.
“His body will turn or his head will snap toward something when he smells drugs,” he said.
Mohney said the amount of drug calls the pair responds to varies.
“Sometimes it’s once a week. Sometimes, if we are doing some interdiction ops, it could be five times a day,” he said.
Notably, in April, Mohney and Sali were dispatched to assist the Montezuma County Sheriff’s Office in a drug investigation where Sali ended up finding and notifying officers to a quarter-pound of cocaine worth over $14,000.
Apart from drug searches and burglary investigations, Mohney and Sali respond to calls involving missing people and conduct regular patrols through La Plata County.
Mohney said having Sali with him when he goes on patrols gives him peace of mind and makes the job more fun – particularly for calls where he is the only deputy responding. In their patrol vehicle, he can remotely open Sali’s door if he needs help.
“Sometimes you’re 45 minutes away from backup, but I have him,” he said. “I know if something weird happens, I could pop his door and he will come looking for me. So it’s really nice to have my backup.”
One of the biggest misconceptions surrounding police dogs is that they are aggressive animals, Mohney said. But that isn’t always the case.
“People think they’re just aggressive, horrible animals,” he said. “I hear that all the time – they’re trained to kill. It’s a game to them, they’re not trained to kill. But there are stories of bad police dogs, and it’s just like having a bad cop around. There are some bad cops, but they’re not all bad.”
Sali in particular is a friendly dog, which is an asset when finding missing people. He also just wants to work. German shepherds and Belgian Malinois are bred specifically to be working dogs. Jobs gives them joy, purpose and an outlet for pent-up energy.
“Doing nothing – especially for these breeds – it drives them insane,” Mohney said. They have hunt drive and prey drive, and they’re bred to do that. So you have to give them some sort of outlet.”
Sali provides a vital service, he said, and is recognized by various animal-serving businesses and organizations throughout La Plata County.
Mohney said the Durango Kennel Club donated the full purchase price of Sali to the Sheriff’s Office; Pet Haus donates all of Sali’s food; the Durango Animal Hospital donates his veterinary services; and Pampered Pets offers discounts and a special kennel for Sali whenever Mohney leaves town.
“If it wasn’t for those people, we wouldn’t have any of this anyway, because one vet bill could bankrupt the canine unit,” he said. “We paid $7,500 for him, and that’’ our entire budget.”
But the two don’t just work together – Sali lives with Mohney and his family, and whenever they aren’t working, the pair play, hike and swim together, just as any other person and their dog would. Mohney said ensuring Sali is well-taken care of, balances rest and exercise, and gets love is important to him.
“I got a little buddy with me the entire time,” he said. “And when he’s retired (from police work), he gets to do whatever he wants.”
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