ATHOL — Don’t be confused by the cute, furry nature of the newest member of the Athol Police Department: He’s here to sniff out crime.

Gronk, the 1-year-old German Shepherd named after New England Patriots tight end Rob Gronkowski, received his letter of appointment to the Athol Police Department Sunday afternoon at Summerfest.

Gronk and his handler, Officer Craig Deveneau, have been in training for the past 10 weeks at the Boston Police Academy. They have four more weeks of training before Gronk will be ready for the field.

“Make no bones about it, this will be a paw-sitive experience,” Shaun Suhoski, town manager, said before reading the official appointment papers.

After Gronk finishes training, he will be formally sworn in at a Selectboard meeting by the Town Clerk.

Deveneau had worked with bloodhounds on tracking before, so he had some background when Athol Chief Russell Kleber began discussions about restarting the K9 unit. Kleber said the department had one previously, about eight years ago.

The new K9 unit is funded through a grant from the Stanton Foundation that covers the cost of the dog and the training he and Deveneau go through.

“He’s going to do a lot to protect our community,” Kleber said to the crowd of about 40 on Sunday.

Members of the community brought Gronkowski and Patriots apparel and posed for a group picture with Gronk.

The department is fundraising for some additional equipment, including a bullet proof vest for Gronk, and eventually a new K9 police cruiser with updated technology to ensure Gronk’s safety, especially on hot days, according to Kleber.

Deveneau said Gronk has a great personality, has responded well to all of the training and loves to work.

Kleber said the town is happy about the dog, especially the name, and that the New England Patriots even reached out to do a story in their news bulletin about the dog.

Also on hand at Summerfest were the Northeast Houndsmen, who train bloodhounds for tracking by police departments. Following the appointment of Gronk, the Houndsmen held a demonstration to show how dogs track people using scent. They also brought 13 puppies from their most recent litter, which were a big hit with the children in attendance.

A K9 dog can do a variety of tasks for a department, according to Kleber and Deveneau. Gronk has learned evidence recovery, tackling, agility training and other skills so far. Once his initial training is complete, he will work in the department for six months before returning to Boston to do another month of training.

Reach Miranda Davis
at 413-772-0261, ext. 280
or mdavis@recorder.com.