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Uniontown Police Department mourns loss of Sheiko of K-9 unit

By Rebekah Sungala 5 min read

Sheiko was a good dog, a hard worker and a well-known member of the Uniontown Police Department. The four-legged veteran of the police force died April 20 while undergoing surgery to correct a stomach problem caused by gastric torsion. He was 11 years old.

“Sheiko was the third police dog I’ve worked on the streets with and he was by far the best,” said Officer Michael Garrow Sr., who handled the brindled Dutch shepherd since 2001.

Garrow said the other police dogs he worked with were good, but Sheiko was different – friendly and sociable, but aggressive when needed.

“He was extremely social around people and a great working dog. He loved to work,” Garrow said.

Born and trained in Holland, Sheiko was purchased by Garrow when the dog was 4 years old.

Two weeks later, the pair hit the streets and were partners until the dog’s recent death.

“With Sheiko, I got away with things another officers couldn’t get away. There were times I had Sheiko watching three or four people while I frisked them for weapons. Without him, they would have ran,” Garrow said, adding that people respond differently when a police dog is involved.

Garrow said merely getting Sheiko out of the car was enough to calm most situations.

“Sheiko was used a lot, and not just by our department,” Garrow said.

According to Garrow, Sheiko was a dual-purpose police dog certified to do narcotics and utility work, which involves advanced obedience, tracking, area searches, building searches, evidence article searches, criminal apprehension and handler protection.

“From the day I got him until he passed away, we logged over 3,000 hours of formal training,” Garrow said.

Garrow said most police dogs retire when they’re 8 or 9 years old, but he said Sheiko lasted longer than normal because he was in good shape until recent health problems.

“Sheiko went running with me the week he died. We ran five days a week. He was in great shape until he got sick and then everything happened quick,” Garrow said.

According to Garrow, Sheiko was one of the first Dutch shepherds trained to be a police dog when he began working.

“As far as I know, Sheiko was the first in the state,” he said, noting that most K-9 handlers then preferred German shepherds.

A dog trainer before becoming a policeman, Garrow said training police dogs is what initially got him interested in law enforcement.

“I was training dogs long before I was a policeman,” he said, noting that he always believed in familiarizing police dogs with ambulance personnel and firefighters so that the officials could get to the officer if he was injured.

“In the old days, they would sometimes have to shoot the dog to get to its handler because the dog was trained to protect. That never made any sense to me. I always got my police dogs very used to the EMTs and firemen in case of an emergency. I used to take Sheiko over the fire department all the time,” he said.

Garrow said he and his wife, Veretta, are still getting used to Sheiko being gone.

“You wake up and realize he’s not there. It’s hard to explain,” Garrow said. “There are people who don’t think it’s a big deal because he was just a dog, but you get attached when you live and work with the dog every day.”

Officer Thomas Kolencik said Sheiko will be missed.

“I’ve never seen a dog like him,” Kolencik said. “It was like he had a switch that could be flipped. Sheiko could chase somebody down and then turn around and lick a kid’s face. It was as if he knew right from wrong.”

Kolencik said Garrow and Sheiko attended many community events and that people, especially children, loved meeting Sheiko.

“Everyone wanted to pet him,” Kolencik said, noting that Sheiko was an exceptional police dog.

“Obviously, the dog had natural abilities, but he was as good as he was because of his handler. Mike is a top-of-the-line dog trainer and he worked exclusively with Sheiko. He deserves 100 percent credit,” Kolencik said.

Kolencik said it’s hard for the general public to understand the bond between a police dog, its handler and the officers who work with the dog.

“We considered Sheiko a police officer. He was a part of our police family, and he was part of Mike’s immediate family,” Kolencik said. “His death was upsetting.”

Police Chief Jason A. Cox said Sheiko was a well-trained police dog and a valuable asset to the department.

“Sheiko was like a robot,” Cox said.

“He could be in a room with 20 people and Mike would be in another room, and all Mike would have to do is whistle a certain way and Sheiko would recognize it and go right to him. “He did what Mike commanded.”

Cox said the department is fortunate to have a K-9 unit and that Sheiko was a great police dog.

“His presence absolutely made a difference,” Cox said.

Garrow said he is currently working with a new police dog, Leo, and hopes to have him on the department’s roster soon.

“I’ve been training him, and I hope he can start right away,” Garrow said. “He’s a lot like Sheiko.”

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