Say hello to the Town of Poughkeepsie's newest K9, an almost two year old German Shephard Belgian Malinois mix named Taya!

Taya resides with her handler, Officer Joe Lombardi, and his family.  PO Lombardi has always been interested in working with dogs and is a longtime dog owner.  He says it was one of his career goals to combine his passion for dogs with his love of police work.

PO Lombardi and Taya graduated K9 training this past November, 2020.  She is certified in patrol, tracking, scent detection and narcotics detection.  In March of 2021 K9 Taya and PO Lombardi then went to a four week Canine Narcotics Detection training, which certified Taya to detect Cocaine, Heroin, Ecstasy and Methamphetamine.  PO Lombardi and Taya also hold the certification of Narcotics Detections.

In speaking with the Town of Poughkeepsie Community Policing Department, we learned that

PO Lombardi chose Taya from 9 dogs when he went to pick out his K9 partner.  Taya went through 16 weeks of training with Po Lombardi to get her certification in Patrol, Tracking and Scent Detection.  On her time off, she likes to run in the field, play in the snow, and play with her Kong. The Town of Poughkeepsie Police Department is very proud to have K9 Taya and Officer Lombardi protecting our town.

A little background on PO Lombardi, who has been an officer since 2004, starting his career in NYPD and coming to Poughkeepsie in 2007.  Before taking on the role of K9 officer, PO Lombardi was previously assigned to the patrol division and the SWAT team.

There are 2 K9 teams on the Town of Poughkeepsie Police Department, both hold certifications in Patrol, Tracking and Scent Detection.  PO Lombardi and Taya also hold the certification of Narcotics Detections, while PO Mikelic and K9 Kyle hold the certification of Explosives Detection. K9 Taya has already been put to work doing several tracks and article recovery searches for the department.

Thank you for protecting Poughkeepsie, Taya!

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