K9 Unit Management

About the Book

"This book is definitely more than just police dog management, and what you need to know to manage a unit of this nature. It gives insight into the core of the men who work in uniforms with dogs, the way they think, the dangers they face, and their remarkable day-to-day experiences. Their insight into the unknown world of dogs and the bond between human and animal is truly remarkable. What is striking is how they put things into perspective.

"The author's descriptive style makes it an easy read, and enhances the vast amount of knowledge, facts and real life experience it portrays.

"Covering conceptual ideas on the intricacies of police dog culture, in the book he draws easy to understand comparisons. It's like nothing you would expect, and yet is everything that you wanted to know. It covers every minute detail of a K9 unit, and is written in such a fashion that I think it will have something to offer for years to come. For old and new, police and non-police alike, anyone who reads it will learn something, if not about police dogs then about their own dogs."

-- Annalie Reid, Kempton Express Newspaper

About the Author

Reiner Geel is Service Animal Unit Commander for the Ekurhuleni Metro Police Department Specialized Units. Born August 8th in 1960, in Johannesburg South Africa he was raised as a farm/city boy. After completing school he went to University to study Civil Engineering and then started his own business as a building contractor. He was then drafted for National Service into the South African Defense force and was later transferred to Special Forces, known as the "Merlin Forces" that worked under the UN. There he found himself in the middle of the "Seven Day War" in South West Africa where he spent a year in the war zone now known as Namibia. It was during this period that he started working with dogs. He finished his military term and joined the then Kempton Park Traffic Department. He was one of the first members of their bridging group turned crime fighter. He received several certificates for bravery and service beyond the call of duty.

One of the proudest moments was the approval of an application and motivation he wrote for transforming the department into a City Police department on behalf of his Director, to the Minister of Safety and Security. He was the founder of the K9 unit and Tactical unit for Kempton Park City Police. In 2000 he unified the five councils K9 units into one K9 unit under the banner of the Ekurhuleni Metro Police K9 Unit, with the amalgamation of the former City councils having taken place. He is also the founder of the new Ekurhuleni Metro Police Equestrian unit with 97 horses, and is busy helping form a SWAT unit as well. His colleagues describe him as a great father of three lovely children and husband to his wife Louise. A natural leader, amongst other things, he is a man with vision, ambition and lots of drive. Analytically minded, a black and white person, with very little gray areas in thinking. In addition, he does not like being in the limelight at all.