K9 Teddy, by Kathy Wilson and James Hajik

K9 Teddy is a proud member of the San Mateo County Sheriff's Office (SMCSO)’s Therapy K9 Program. The department has 12 German Shepherds that focus on traditional law enforcement, and three therapy dogs attached to school resource officers whose focus is community engagement. The team also includes a bloodhound named Hope, who is the only certified tracking bloodhound in the Bay Area used by law enforcement to find missing people.

Serving the Bayside communities and San Carlos schools with his handler Deputy James Hajik, Teddy came to the department in July of 2024. He was a graduate of Cali Pals Doodles and Service Dogs in Hollister, a breeder who has specialized in raising service animals for over 15 years. He is a Goldendoodle who has been bred to be calm, personable, and intuitive ─ just the traits needed to calm people in times of crisis and build bridges between law enforcement, residents, and local schools.

“Teddy had earned his place as a great addition to SMCSO’s Therapy Canine Team,” Deputy Hajik says. “Only 22 months old and about 80 lbs., he’s still a puppy, but he understands his job and does it well. He’s calm and welcoming, a good listener, and quite intuitive, which are all essential traits in our line of work.”

“A lot of his training has been about desensitization. For example, we went to a basketball game recently and discovered that bouncing balls freaked him out. It’s our job to find those things and work on desensitizing him until he’s OK in the many environments we’re likely to face,” Deputy Hajik says.

During his training, there were police cars moving and helicopters hovering around the dogs with lights and sirens blaring so they could get used to that. They were put on a boat and taken into the water. “You want to make sure your dog can remain calm and focused in many different situations. Teddy is also constantly being trained on basic obedience so we know he will do his job when we need him to.”

A Day in the Life

K9 Teddy and James spend a lot of their time visiting local schools and checking in with the kids. “They love seeing Teddy and run right up when we arrive. We get to know the students, and they get to know us. If someone is having a mental health crisis or a particularly stressful day, they can spend some time with the us and that calms things down. Everyone loves Teddy and his calm, loving nature, and he helps us build bridges wherever we go.”

James and Teddy also work with victims of violent crimes, particularly sex crimes, where the person might have been so traumatized, they are unable to talk about what happened to them. When someone pets a dog, studies show that “stress hormones” like cortisol go down, and "feel-good" hormones like oxytocin, serotonin, and dopamine go up. This allows victims to provide more accurate statements and remember details they wouldn’t normally recall, which improves success rates finding perpetrators and solving crimes.

Sometimes he is asked to go on death notifications to support a victim’s family, as well as mental health calls. Having Teddy on the team helps resolve a situation more peacefully.

“Dogs can be very comforting, and Teddy’s presence helps calm everyone down, keeping people safe and diffusing a difficult situation so we can move on to better long-term solutions such as mental health interventions and therapies,” Deputy Hajik says.

It’s also worth remembering that deputies can be exposed to very stressful situations and traumatic incidents in the course of their jobs. Taking a moment to play with Teddy is often very therapeutic, and Teddy loves it because deputies are often willing to share their snacks with him. He has been told more than once that he’s the #1 therapy dog in the program (just don't tell his brothers that!).

Community Engagement ─ Bridging Gaps

“We want to have the most positive impact on our community every day that we’re out there,” Deputy Hajik says. “Rather than being afraid of the police, I want people to think of us as a friend, someone they can trust, and someone they are comfortable asking for help. Teddy just naturally breaks down barriers. Kids might not want to talk to the police because of things they’ve experienced, or heard, or seen in the media, but Teddy breaks down those barriers. They like to hang out with us and hopefully when they need us for something serious, they will feel free to call for help. This is such a good program and such a positive way to build bridges within the community, it feels like every police department should be doing the same thing. It’s a win-win all around.”

A Job Well Done

One day, we were called out to a home in San Carlos with two adults and a 5-year-old-boy, who was hiding in a closet under a blanket. I was able to go in with Teddy and get the boy to feel safe enough to come out while the other officers were dealing with the adults. We talked and the boy hung out with us until everything was calm again.

“Now whenever I visit his school, he runs up and gives me a big hug. And his teacher has told me that he wants to be a police officer when he grows up. Having a positive impact on the community, making a difference, building relationships ─ that’s what our job is all about.”

Working with Teddy has taught us all the power of kindness, patience, and empathy. “Even though the day will eventually come, I can’t imagine life without Teddy, and his many friends feel the same way. He has learned so much since joining our team, and we’ve learned so much from him as well.”

“It feels really good when Teddy and I can go home at the end of the day and know that we’ve been able to make the world just a little bit better than we found it,” Deputy Hajik says. “Teddy has a dream job and he knows it. He’s the star of the show wherever we go, and working together, we get to make a positive difference pretty much every day.”