Guests will have a chance to mingle with dogs from the Tennessee Bureau of Investigations (TBI) K9 unit at Alcatraz East. The special event will be on June 28 from 10 am to 12 pm. The meet and greet is included in the regular admission price.
Visitors can learn about what K9 officers do and be able to meet some of them in person. In the U.S., around 50,000 K9 officers carry out specific duties. The dogs, most often German shepherds, Belgian malinois, bloodhounds, or labrador retrievers, are hard-working and serve various roles, including accelerant detection and electronic detection.
Dogs entering K9 training programs are chosen for their characteristics, which include being social, cooperative, and hard-working. They go through vigorous training before they are ready to join law enforcement officers. The dogs are typically present to help provide patrol duties or for their detection abilities, such as detecting drugs, electronics, or explosives.