KANNUR: Ruby's services will no longer be available to sniff out the danger in Kannur, where bomb threats are a common occurrence. Explosive sniffer dog No. 254 Ruby of Kannur City K9 Squad now has a rest period at 'Vishranti' at Thrissur Police Academy. Ruby, a Labrador breed, has largely protected Kannur from bomb threats in political conflict zones for the past ten years.

Ruby has been a part of the dog squad in Kannur since 2014 when bomb politics was raging. Excellence in VIP, and VVIP duties were also a speciality of this police dog. Ruby gained media attention for sniffing out bombs and machetes in decisive police raids in Thalassery and Panur regions. Ruby's handler was Senior CPO Jason Fernandez.

There are several areas in Kannur where bombs are being manufactured to eliminate political opponents. Incidents of bombs exploding during construction are also common. Ruby has uncovered bombs many times from party offices and premises.

Ruby's services become valuable to the community when the offenders leave bombs in the bushes and hillsides when police raids occur during ongoing conflicts. The service of this police dog becomes invaluable in the context of incidents where innocent people including workers and children are injured due to such hidden bombs.

Vishranti

Vishranti is a retirement centre for police dogs. Previously there was an opportunity for people to adopt dogs after the service. But due to security reasons, this practice was stopped and Vishranti was started in Thrissur. The home department has decided to keep the dogs in police custody considering that these trained dogs may be used by people for criminal activities.

Dog Squad

In 1959, the Dog Squad of the Kerala Police started with three Alsatian dogs in Thiruvananthapuram. Now the department has dogs and kennel facilities in every district. Apart from common breeds like German Shepherd and Labrador, 37 dogs from breeds like Beagle, Chippiparai, Kanni and Belgian Malinois were recently recruited to the K9 squad.