IT has been more than a year since Husky, the security dog who had been roaming a Mount Edgecombe housing estate, was found. The German Shepherd-cross Husky had residents and his owners concerned after escaping from his handler. For five weeks, he evaded capture and survived off scraps of food that residents had given him.
When he was found, he was covered in ticks, his ears were fly-bitten and he had lost some muscle tone. Northglen News recently caught up with Clint O’Reilly from Couver Security’s K9 Unit (to which Husky belongs) to find out how the security dog’s recovery is coming along.
“Husky has made an incredible turnaround since his ordeal over a year ago. He has adapted very well and has also gone through a rigorous training programme with our anti-hijacking unit as well as tactical response unit. He has just blown us away with his personality and work ethic.
“I thought that he would have more problems psychologically because he was chased by people trying to help him at the time. He became very skittish, but he was able to shrug it off,” he said.
O’Reilly said Husky recently joined him in a special operation in the Midlands recently. He helped nab thieves targeting resorts in the area.
“He was fantastic for that operation, and because of his Husky blood he was able to cover longer distances and the operation was a success. What I’m most pleased about is that he has gone from being a patrol dog to a tactical response dog, and he has adjusted incredibly well to the training,” he said.
Jack Nair, who is part of the specialised services at Couver, also praised Husky’s incredible turnaround.
“Since his recovery, he has grown in leaps and bounds. I was personally involved in his assessment and I’m amazed with his confidence. The results speak for themselves,” Nair said.
