Also called: K9 Handler
A police officer partnered with a trained dog to find drugs, track suspects, and search for missing people.
Starts the shift with the dog in the back of the patrol car, gets called to track a suspect who ran from a crash, and does a drug sniff at a traffic stop. The dog lives at home with the officer.
Estimate based on BLS police officers.
Approximate: anchored on Bureau of Labor Statistics data for a broader job group.
High school diploma, about 4 years after high school. Police academy plus years as an officer before selection for K9 training.
Ways in: On-the-job training, Military. Training cost: Get paid while you train.
Majors to look at: Criminal Justice.
Growing about average (about 3% over 10 years).
Low risk for 10 years. Drones and sensors help searches, but tracking suspects and finding people with a living dog partner stays human field work.
Classes: Physical education, Psychology, Biology, Government or civics.
Official data: O*NET occupation 33-3051.
Career Universe is an early version. Pay, training and AI-risk figures are estimates to start your own research, not verified facts. The research was written with AI research assistants, checked by validation scripts and spot-checked by hand. Check anything important with schools, employers and official sources. How the numbers work.