Hearst Castle dog gets an equipment upgrade to keep him safe

A defender of Hearst Castle has new body armor, thanks to a charitable donation from a nonprofit organization.

K-9 Storm is the California State Parks defender, and the nonprofit is Vested Interest in K-9s, an East Coast-based charity with the mission of providing bullet-and-stab protective vests and other assistance to dogs in law enforcement and related agencies throughout the U.S.

Storm’s handler is Ranger Ian Beveridge. The K-9’s vest is embroidered with the sentiment: “In memory of K-9 Nicky, Las Vegas Metropolitan Police, NV.”

The new vest is protecting one of the Castle’s living treasures, according to Dan Falat, superintendent of the State Parks district that includes the elaborate former estate of media magnate William Randolph Hearst.

K-9s are skilled at protecting their handlers, finding and apprehending uncooperative suspects and deterring crime. They also excel at capturing the hearts of the public.

“We have a strong tradition of having K-9s at the Castle,” Falat said. “They’re a very unique and critical part of our 24-hour security and protection of the Castle. They work with our firefighters and security officers” and act as goodwill ambassadors.

In addition to responding to bomb threats, suspect searches and other incidents, Castle K-9s have served at a variety of special occasions, including the Super Bowl and graduations for UC Santa Barbara and Cal Poly.

“There are currently three K-9s on the hilltop,” Falat said Tuesday. All of them are German shepherds.

The others are Artos, handled by Ranger Brett King, and Bodie, the new pup on the block, handled by Ranger Daniel Gant.

The dogs are based at the Castle, Falat said, but “our K-9s provide a huge service to not only the monument, but to the entire state. They respond to calls throughout the county and throughout California. They’re bomb-trained as well as protection-trained.”

That training for handler and dog is pricey, costing about $10,000 for the two classes, a month of patrol-school training and a month at bomb school.

This story was originally published December 14, 2016 at 10:33 AM with the headline "Hearst Castle dog gets an equipment upgrade to keep him safe."