Santa Barbara- S County

SANTA BARBARA COUNTY, Calif. - Two dogs with the Santa Barbara County Sheriff's Office are celebrating milestones this week.

With over six years of service, sheriff dog Magnum is retiring. The German Shepherd's last day in service was Thursday. Magnum and Sheriff's Deputy Mike McNeil have worked together in over 40 narcotics-related searches and won an award for narcotics searches at a Las Vegas law enforcement dog competition.

As one dog's illustrious career comes to a close, another dog is adding accolades.

Sheriff's dog Krypto, a 2-year-old black Labrador Retriever, logged his 200th narcotics find. Krypto and his handler, Custody Deputy Ian Ur, work primarily at the Santa Barbara Main Jail searching for drugs like methamphetamine and heroin that may come in and out of the jail.

The sheriff's department says they will be purchasing additional sheriff's dogs in early 2020, one to be assigned to patrol operations and the other to assist Krypto and Deputy Ur.

A press release from the sheriff's office also gives a special tip of the hat to Tess, a 3-year-old bulldog mix that is being fostered at the main jail through the Santa Barbara Humane Society. Tess’s primary assignments include "sleeping underneath various desks, giving slobbery greetings and performing a very limited number of tricks for treats." Tess is not officially part of the Sheriff’s K9 program, but is an honorary member of the Sheriff’s Office family.

The Sheriff’s Office K9 program is funded primarily through donations. For more information about the program, click here. If you are interested in donating to the program, you can send them an email.

If you are interested in adopting from the Santa Barbara Humane Society, please visit their website.