GARDEN GROVE POLICE canine support unit is (left to right) Officer Pat Julienne – with Misha – Officer Derek Link– with Nellie – and Corporal Adam Zmija – with Heart (Orange County Tribune photo).

By Jim Tortolano/Orange County Tribune

Police dogs – whether they’re the “apprehension” kind that help arrest bad guys or sniff out drugs, or the “support” kind variety that calm and comfort people in stressful situations – are becoming increasingly popular in law enforcement.

But how and where to train them?

“There isn’t a single K-9 training facility in Orange County,” said Officer Derek Link of the Garden Grove Police Department. He and colleagues Corporal Adam Zmija and Officer Pat Julienne came up with an idea that could make the Big Strawberry the “Big Dog” in canine training across the region.

The Garden Grove City Council and Garden Grove Unified School District Board of Education have recently approved a memorandum of understanding that clears the way for a pilot facility to be established at Pioneer Park (on Chapman Avenue, east of Harbor). It’s on the campus of Earl Warren Elementary School.

“There were several times that the school had to be put on lockdown,” said Link. “There are transients in the area and it’s very easy to go on to campus. We see that park and how close it is to Warren and started thinking, how can we make that school a little more safe and secure?”

The solution? A pilot two-year training facility that all the police forces would have access to. Thanks to donations, fencing has been ordered and there will be containers for K-9 equipment such as A-frames for dogs to climb, and “odor walls” where narcotics can be concealed.

So far the John Reynolds Youth Support Canine Foundation has raised $38,000 toward a goal of $50,000. The long-term intention is to build a permanent structure on that location that would make Garden Grove’s program a standout across Southern California.

Now, wouldn’t that be something to howl about?