Utah DNR Division of Law Enforcement K9s stay busy with searches, wildlife and training

CEDAR CITY — They're often dropped into dire circumstances, hoping for a hint that can lead to a dangerous suspect, or to a missing person.

K-9 handlers and their highly trained dogs don't have easy jobs, and those who work for the Utah Department of Natural Resources Division of Law Enforcement are called in to help in a variety of low-odds situations, from finding fugitives and missing people to article searches and wildlife detection.

"Things I can't pick up with my eyes, my K-9 partner can pick up with his nose," officer Kory Lilga of K-9 Hawkeye said.

Lilga said his dog was trained on eight different species of protected wildlife in Utah, an ability that comes in handy when solving wildlife-related crimes.

The division's five K-9 teams stay busy.

In 2024, they were deployed to 120 detection operations as well as to 50 article searches and tracking ops.

Recently, Lilga and other officers have been helping to train police from other agencies, and that work has taken them to places like remote areas west of Cedar City.

"These guys need to be able to share that with their own departments," said officer Josh Carver, who was also involved in the training effort.

Carver worked with trainees to go through strategies and tactical formations.

"Be looking for threats — if you guys see them first, be ready!" Carver instructed while guiding a group through the brush. "You keep your head on a swivel the entire time!"

Officer Matt Burgess said the training also focuses on things like finding and following tracks in dirt or through dense woods and sagebrush.

"One of the things I really enjoy is teaching these other officers how to do this," Burgess said. "We teach the successes and the failures, and then how to learn from those things, and to be able to see that end product is really rewarding."

Lilga said the officers and their K-9s enjoy meeting and engaging people in the wild, and they're prepared to go wherever the job takes them at a moment's notice.

"We travel all around the state; we'll help out any county or any place that we need to go," Lilga said. "In the backcountry or around town, we're always willing to help."

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