Two new patrol officers have been added to the roster of the Salisbury Township Police Department in the past several weeks.

Both have four paws, a furry coat and really good scent-sensitive noses. They are the two new Salisbury Township Police Department K-9 dogs, Ryker and Echo.

Ryker, a Dutch Shepherd breed, has been on patrol with his handler, Patrol Officer Brian Zulic for several weeks.

Zulic had been the K-9 officer patrolling for five years with Miklo until the dog’s passing in October 2023.

Echo, a Belgian Malinois breed, recently began patrols with Patrol Officer Kyle Watson after canine medical issues were taken care of.

The township’s K-9 program began in 2003 when citizens, the Lehigh County District Attorney’s office and Salisbury Township provided the funds for the purchase, training and upkeep of Zeus, a German shepherd from Budapest, Hungary. Senior Patrol Officer Jason Laky was the township’s first K-9 handler and prime mover of the township’s K-9 program.

Fonzie, Rocket and Miklo followed and served honorably for many years.

“Because of generous citizen funding, the township was able this year to purchase, train and maintain two canines,” Salisbury Township Police Department Chief Donald Sabo said.

“Over the years, our canines have been invaluable for searches, apprehensions, drug detection, law enforcement duties protecting our officers and for educational purposes and community relations,” Sabo said.