MONTAGUE — The Selectboard swore in the Police Department’s new four-legged officer Lawrence “Larry” Akim on Monday, filling a role that was left vacant when beloved K-9 Artur, better known as “Artie,” died in October after a decade of service.

Montague Police Officer James Ruddock stood before the Selectboard with Larry seated at his side, occasionally standing on his hind legs to request a treat from the officer’s vest. Ruddock explained he found Larry at Pennsylvania’s Shallow Creek Kennels — the same police dog training kennel where he found Artur — on his way home from a vacation.

“He’s been in the country from Slovakia for about six weeks and I’ve had him for about a month now,” Ruddock said. “He’s considered a ‘green dog,’ meaning he’s not trained. He’d been at the kennel in Slovakia for about a year to show that he’s had the working capability, so he’s ready to go. Now, it’s just me putting the commands to the different disciplines that he would be trained to do.”

In his new role at the Montague Police Department, the 18-month-old K-9 is being trained in “tracking patrol,” or being able to detect and track anything with a human odor — a practice that Ruddock said is crucial in searching for evidence, lost persons or objects.

After learning to track, Larry will learn how to search areas and buildings. Next, he will learn aggression control and narcotics odor detection. As an ode to Artie, Ruddock bestowed the middle name “Artur” upon Larry.

Ruddock added that when the Pennsylvania kennel presented him with a group of potential police dogs, Larry showed not only work drive, but also friendliness.

“He looks just like Artur, so that may have been what sold me on him, other than his drive to work. Looking down at him, he looks and reminds me of Artur,” Ruddock said. “[Kennel workers] bring them out and they do search hunts with them, with the balls, and they get them into what they call ‘drive,’ so you can really see how they work and their drive to work. The last test was to just bring them out and have them greet us. He was the dog that came up and actually greeted us — he wasn’t busy doing other things. … He sort of chose me.”

Congratulating the Police Department on its furry addition, Selectboard Chair Richard Kuklewicz said that with Ruddock’s training and expertise, he expects Larry will be “another great K-9.” Ruddock responded that Larry has “big paws to fill.”

“On behalf of the board, we’d like to welcome Officer Larry to the ranks and thank you for all your efforts. I know having this K-9 is a 24-hour job. I really appreciate your work and your dedication to it,” Kuklewicz said. “He has a lot to stand up to with what Artur already did in town. I’m sure we’ll be sharing a lot of positives about Larry.”

Larry’s arrival comes amid recent Police Department staffing changes. In September, the department began offering a $10,000 sign-on bonus in an effort to fill two vacant officer positions, with a third on the horizon, as Chief Christopher Williams said in an interview Tuesday that an officer will be departing “for greener pastures” in eastern Massachusetts later this month.

Williams added that he has two candidates that will attend the Boylston Police Academy in January and are expected to graduate in June.

Anthony Cammalleri can be reached at acammalleri@recorder.com or 413-930-4429.