The mission of the Cohasset Police K-9 Unit is to provide well trained police canine assistance to patrol officers in the field for the prevention and detection of crimes. The main function of the unit is the location of suspects and/or narcotics sought by the Cohasset Police, as well as locating missing or endangered people of the community. The K-9 unit also strives to promote a favorable public image of the police department through community outreach. The enhancement of department-community relations, as well as officer safety and productivity, are key objectives of the K-9 unit mission. Through training and education, the K-9 unit seeks continued self-improvement and an increasing involvement in the community law enforcement effort. K-9 Handler Officer Patrick Reardon and K-9 Erik have been serving the community as a team since August of 2011.
The Cohasset Police K-9 unit is primarily funded by The Cohasset Working Dog Foundation (CWDF). The CWDF was founded in 2011 in order to raise funds to start the Cohasset Police K-9 program. The mission of the Cohasset Working Dog Foundation is to support Cohasset’s Police K-9 program and to provide grants to individuals in the community toward the purchase and training of service dogs to support people with disabilities. CWDF also supports a Therapy Dog program, which funds the training of therapy dogs who visit hospitals, nursing homes, libraries and schools.
K9 Einstein and his partner Officer Reardon graduated from K9 school in August 2018. K9 Erik is retired and living with Officer Reardon and his family.