Williamson County welcomes first crisis K-9, Chase

HUTTO, Texas - Meet Chase, Williamson County's first-ever crisis K-9!

The four-month-old golden retriever pup is joining the Hutto Police Department to provide emotional support and help de-escalate high-stress situations during emergencies.

What they're saying:

Chase is part of an initiative between Hutto police and the Central Texas Public Safety Commission to bring a critical new resource to Williamson County first responders.

"After meeting him and his spunky personality, I don't think there's a better name that could have fit. It's just perfect for this dog and we have all fallen in love with him," said Ashley Copeland, chief operating officer for the Central Texas Public Safety Commission.

Chase's duties will include:

• Providing immediate emotional support during critical incidents
• Offering trauma-informed comfort for victims and families
• Supporting officers with post-incident stress relief

"Chase looks like a puppy, but he was born for this. He was born, for this he's been trained for this, he is going to go into this field and provide a next-level service to our community," Hutto Police Chief Jeffrey Yarbrough said.

The pup will undergo extensive training with foundational obedience, specialized therapy dog training and comprehensive crisis response and desensitization. He will also be expected to complete the AKC Canine Good Citizen program, a 10-skill test to teach good manners to dogs.

"His role is going to be going out to our mental health calls and crisis calls within the community. Also, if we have a critical incident, he'll be there as part of our peer support team with our officers," said Ashley Wilson, crisis intervention specialist with Hutto police.

"As the chief of this department, my days are extremely busy, but I have yet to come across a day to where I saw Chase that I didn't stop and feel better after the interaction. And if he's doing that for me, I know that he's going to do that for so many in our community," Yarbrough said.

"He's going to be the loving, calming presence we need when things are chaotic or stressful," Wilson said.

What you can do:

Officials hope Chase will be ready to serve early next year.