Canine ‘Doug’ is Well Received

by Randy Pierce

Much welcomed and appreciated by many, including students at Triad Middle School in St. Jacob, a new canine member of the Madison County Sheriff’s Department named Doug is making many friends and has been well received as a result of his gentle, pleasant demeanor.

Having made a visit to the school with his handler, Sergeant Michael Tassone, with the assistance of the on-campus resource officer there, Matt Maue, Doug received lots of attention and a few hugs as students were encouraged to interact with him.

The dog has also made more than one appearance at the Madison County Administration Building in Edwardsville where, according to Chief Deputy Marcos Pulido, Doug is “super smart” enough that he remembers which employees there have given him treats so he knows to go to those desks and stare at the drawer where the tasty rewards are located.

Doug, however, was not taken on board by the sheriff’s department only to perform such acts in community settings as an ambassador of goodwill.

As Pulido explained to the county board judiciary committee earlier this month, Doug is a golden retriever “wellness” dog, not a canine similar to those used by other law enforcement agencies to detect drugs or assist with finding and apprehending criminal suspects.

Madison County, as Pulido shared with the committee, to the best of his understanding, is one of the first in the entire state to utilize a wellness dog like Doug in its jail, walking around with his handler to help “create a positive environment for the detainees.”

“It’s kind of like a good behavior tool,” Pulido stated, “because our detainees actually now look forward to that,” including when they are informed of scheduled visits within certain areas at specific times.

Pulido additionally called attention to the utilization of Doug when the chief deputy spoke as a panelist at a mental health forum held in late February that featured three members of the state legislature and a number of stakeholders involved in providing services connected to the topic at hand.

Emphasizing that implementing the dog’s service was the intent of Sheriff Jeff Connor to assist with the management of individuals being held at the jail, Pulido told those present at the forum the concept of having Doug interact with the inmates is incentive based in that “most people who love animals, whenever they see a dog or an animal, they’re gonna change their behavior and they’re gonna get excited.”

This has been so successful, Pulido went on, that several detainees now inquire regularly with deputies at the jail when they will get to see Doug again, “so we really love that.”