Two new K-9 members to narcotics unit

The Police Chief in New Haven has been trying to beef up the narcotics unit. Today, the chief officially welcomed two new K-9 members.

When New Haven police went in a home on State Street with a two-year-old lab named Orvis, the dog was able to spot the drugs immediately; a dog's nose is reportedly a thousand times more powerful than that of a human.

"We continued our search and he actually located it in a vent, a heating vent under the bed; it was a pretty secretive hiding spot," said Detective Robert Criscuolo of the New Haven Narcotics Unit.

Found was $65,000 worth of heroin. It's something the detectives may have missed. But it's not just drugs. A three-year-old dog named Nia has a nose just as sharp. She sniffed out nearly $17,000 in cash that had just been handled by drug dealers. The chief said their value to the unit is immeasurable.

"One of the [dogs] went in and hit on four different locations, located narcotics in four locations, we then sent the other dog in, it hit on the same four locations," said Chief James Lewis of the New Haven Police Department.

Nia and Orvis were both officially sworn-in Monday in a brief ceremony. It took twelve weeks of training to get to this point. The dogs now live and work with their handlers 24-hours a day. In fact, their training never stops.

"They only get fed when they work which we work them everyday but they have to find drugs to get fed, they don't get fed out of a bowl anymore," said Detective Ted Forbes of the New Haven Narcotics Unit.

So even when they're off-duty, their handlers hide things for them to find.  It's a weapon the department said  will work wonders for them.

"When we go into a search warrant, they can pick up the odor of controlled substances a lot quicker than we can find them, so it helps out a lot," said Detective Jodi Novella of the New Haven Narcotics Unit.

New Haven was able to get the K-9 officers because of donations from Milk Bone and Walmart , as well as fundraising by the South Humphrey's Neighborhood Association.

Labs are now the preferred dog of choice for narcotics units; their sense of smell supposedly ranks above all other breeds. They are also extremely obedient.