In June 0f 1962, the St. Tammany Parish Sheriff's Office established its first K-9 Corps, consisting of two specially-trained dogs and two deputies trained to use them in their criminal investigations. Here is an article about the new initiative published in the St. Tammany Tribune newspaper.
K-9 Corps Activated by Sheriff's Department
He's just eleven months old -- but he's big, and strong, and mean. His life, quite literally, has been dedicated to the prevention and detection of any one of many forms of crime, and though he obeys only the commands implicit in the words and gestures of one master, residents of St. Tammany Parish can rest more easily, secure in the knowledge that he, and the rest of his team, are on twenty-four hour alert in all weathers and seasons, to protect life and property wherever threatened.
His name is "Bolt," a huge Belgian Shepherd who, with his team-mate, 18-month-old "Rockie,'' and the two deputies with whom they trained, comprise the small, but highly efficient K-9 Corp recently activated by sheriff Andrew Erwin in his continuing quest to give St. Tammanyites the finest sheriff's department in Louisiana, and one of the finest in the United States.
Bolt, with his trainer and constant companion, Deputy Wallace B. Laird, 23, of Folsom, is the product of an intensive four month -- five day week -- training course for K-9 teams at the New Orleans Police Academy.
Rockie, with Deputy August Maurer, 41, of Slidell, went through the same crash course, graduating with top honors in the class, May 19, following which they joined the ever growing elite corp of dogs and men that are building an enviable record of law enforcement and crime prevention wherever introduced.
Close rapport between the men and their animals is of highest importance, for the teams must frequently work in utter silence, with the dogs alertly prepared to respond to the hand signals of the men with complete and unquestioning obedience.
Trained to control crowds, track fugitives over any and all terrain, disarm and hold desperately dangerous criminals, the teams work out daily to retain the razor-sharp condition demanded by their task.
So closely are they attuned that the dogs have actually assumed certain of the physical characteristics of the men who handle them -- Rockie, lean almost to emaciation, yet eagerly alert to the slightest command, is a perfect match for deputy Gus Maurer, an air force veteran and former helicopter pilot, who lives in Slidell with his wife and three children.
Bolt, who at eleven months is larger and heavier than Rockie, boasts the same swift responses, beneath an exterior of concealed power that is a perfect match for Deputy Wallace Laird, a graduate of Covington High School, and sergeant in the National Guard, who is also married and the proud daddy of one daughter.
Very few citizens who are not closely allied to local law enforcement agencies can fully evaluate this latest addition to the sheriff's office, but experienced officials throughout the area readily concede that the K-9 Corp will prove extremely valuable in the various tasks to which they are dedicated.
St. Tammany Tribune - June 8, 1962
