Canine Unit

The Woodstock Police Service currently has one Canine handler to support Police Service Dog (PSD) Cruz and PSD Striker. The handler cares for, trains and works with the Police Service Dogs 24/7.

PSD Striker is the veteran of the two dogs. He turned 11 years old in November 2024 and celebrated his 9th anniversary with his handler in September 2024. Originally born in Hungary, PSD Striker - a German Shepherd/Belgian Malinois mix - was purchased from a broker in Indiana, USA. As PSD Striker ages, he is slowly phasing out his work into a gradual retirement as he allows his younger canine partner to take on a majority of the work. PSD Striker is still strongly motivated and enjoys making appearances at community service events where he can demonstrate his skills to members of the community.

PSD Cruz is a male German Shepherd who was born in the Netherlands, but came to us from Tri-State Canine in Ohio, USA. He turned three years old on October 20, 2024. He is very active, and highly motivated to work. PSD Cruz came to the Woodstock Police Service as a result of the tragic line of duty death of PSD Taz in July 2023. As a thank you to the community for their ongoing support of the WPS Canine program, the Woodstock Police Service hosted a "Name the K9 Contest" allowing members of the community to submit name suggestions, resulting in "Cruz".

PSD Cruz and PSD Striker earned certifications in General Patrol, General Detection and Narcotic Detection. The Canine Unit works with many other WPS units to execute all their duties and partners with other Police Service Canine Units to conduct ongoing training.