The Cherokee County Public Services Agency recently hosted a specialized Animal Investigations and Safety Training event for animal services professionals.

The training event was held on Nov. 6 at the Cherokee Conference Center in Canton and drew roughly 40 attendees from jurisdictions across the state, as well as from Florida and Alabama. The Cherokee County Animal Shelter and Cherokee Marshal’s Office, both departments within Cherokee County Public Services Agency, teamed up to host the training event.

“I am proud that these departments worked together to provide training for our Animal Shelter Team and Animal Control Officers,” said Public Services Agency Director Dana Martin. “This type of training directly benefits the citizens of this county by making our team better at performing this important work safely and effectively.”

Subjects taught at the eight-hour training event included: Animal Cruelty Investigations, Dangerous Animal Investigations, Tactical Animal Handling, Canine Confrontations, Officer Safety and Community and Culture Competency. Attendees also received eight credit hours from the Georgia Peace Officer and Standards Training Council.

“There is very limited training like this offered, so the turnout was excellent,” said Martin. “I want to thank my staff for their hard work in organizing this event.”