Gunner is not shy. If you're not careful, he may lick you to death.
"He's a ham," explained his handler and roommate, Sweetwater police officer Jenna Mendez.
She introduced the black and tan 5-month-old bloodhound to students at Sweetwater Elementary Monday. The Jimmy Ryce Foundation donated him to police to help keep kids safe.
Gunner is able to track criminals, as well as missing adults and children, Mendez said.
"If a child goes missing, wherever they were last seen, we can take... a pillow case from their bed," she said. "He can smell it... and find them."
According to the foundation, bloodhounds have a million times the scent capacity of humans, and 60 times that of German shepherds.
Gunner could pick up a scent on something like a milk carton a child may have sipped the same day. Even his ears and the wrinkles in his nose help him trap a scent.
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"He's made to smell," said Mendez, who expects Gunner to serve with her 10 to 12 years.
He's replacing a retiring bloodhound, named Nicole. Gunner began his training at ten weeks, and will finish training next year.
The Ryce Foundation was formed after nine-year-old Jimmy Ryce was kidnapped, sexually abused, and killed in 1995.
