Latest member of water patrol at Table Rock Lake has a tail

KIMBERLING CITY, Mo. -- The newest member of the Missouri Water Patrol at Table Rock Lake can't drive a boat. But he's a good swimmer.

Timmy is the water patrol's 3-year-old Belgian Malinois, a trained patrol/narcotics dog, the only one on Table Rock Lake and the southwest regions waters.

Area marinas, business owners and residents raised the $13,250 for the project, and Timmy began working this spring with water patrolman Ryan Zeller.

The dogs are expensive, Zeller said. But he said their senses and the work they can do is more than any human can do.

Timmy and a new canine counterpart at Lake of the Ozarks are part of a patrol experiment to boost law enforcement on Missouri waters, said spokesman Lt. Nick Humphrey. If the dogs work out, the patrol may consider adding more on state waters to help crack down on drug use, control crowds and protect officers who usually venture into dangerous water situations alone, he said.

The Lake of the Ozarks dog has already found drugs on a boat, tracked down a fugitive, helped quell a dock fight and brought order to a loud mob on a boat at the infamous Party Cove.

When the troublemakers saw the dog come to attention, it calmed the situation down pretty quickly, Humphrey said.

Water patrol officers are frequently a long way from help, Humphrey added. Having a dog on the water for backup is beneficial.

The Lake of the Ozarks community also funded its own project.

Timmy lives with Zeller and his two dogs. Area veterinarians donate their medical services, the patrol funds miscellaneous costs.

Like his Lake of the Ozarks counterpart, Timmy has already proven to be an effective crime stopper. Most recently, he found narcotics stashed in a vehicle on a boat ramp at Port of Kimberling.

Over the year, the pair occasionally will be assigned to other lakes and especially rivers in the patrols southwest district where drug cases are more common.