Bruno is the newest member of the Lane County Sheriff’s Office.

The five-year-old German Shepherd just passed his training courses, along with his partner Deputy Lukas Thomas. They’ll be hitting the streets Friday.

K9 Bruno joins two other units with the sheriff’s office. From tracking, to building searches, to evidence retrieval, his outstanding sense of smell is a great tool for the department.

“Bruno can smell the difference between vegetation,” said K9 Deputy Lukas Thomas. “When someone takes footsteps through it, that puts off a scent that the dogs can smell and actually, really, track, footstep for footstep... they can also use the wind and smell human odor. So, if we can’t get a track, or know exactly where that person left, he can go through the woods and use his nose to locate and pinpoint exactly where somebody’s hiding.”

Bruno's nose can also help with nighttime searches or finding a missing person.

Deputy Thomas has worked with the K9 unit for years. “Their hearing, their vision, and their sense of smell is better than ours," he said. "They run a lot faster than us. They have better stamina than us, they are really more athletic than us, there’s a wide range of things we can use them for."

Deputy Daren Kendrick is the K9 trainer, and says having those skills, along with the bark, can be used as an intimidation tool, to prevent a suspect from escalating a situation.

“The influence that the dog has a lot of times people say, ‘Ok the dog found me I’m not going to be able to out run that thing,’” he said.

Bruno’s addition to the sheriff’s office doesn't come cheap. “A typical dog that we will purchase is about $12,000,” said Deputy Kendrick.

Most of the funding comes from community donation.

“We thank the community because we are getting out there and showing them that hey, we’re going to work hard for you, and we’re going to do the job you want us to do,” said Deputy Kendrick.

That $12,000 fee does not include, training, dog food, vet bills, protective gear, etc.

There are multiple ways to donate to the K9 fund, including purchasing merchandise.

Here’s a link to their donation page.