(NEWS CENTER Maine) -- Tuesday marked day two of a fourteen-week K-9 training course in Vassalboro.
Among the officers there from across the state is officer Kaitlyn Thurlow and her K-9 partner in training, Creed. She says "quite a bit" of testing goes into finding the perfect dog.
“They always need a job," explains Officer Thurlow. "They’re not happy unless they’re doing something so if you don’t give them a job, they’re going to find one it’s not exactly something that you’re going to want it could be eating a pillow off the couch or destroying something else.”
Officer Thurlow is the first woman at the South Portland Police Department to become a K-9 officer.
“It’s exciting, I mean in the long run, I do exactly the same thing as all the other K-9 officers it just so happens that I’m a woman. It’s kind of a cool step to be the first one in my department.”
You can follow Officer Thurlow’s journey training her K-9, Creed, on Instagram.
March is Women’s History Month, and Officer Thurlow isn’t alone in paving new ground for females on the force.
“I’m the first female supervisor here so that says probably more than I can put into words,” says Patrol Sergeant Tory Tracy of the Augusta Police Department. She was promoted to a new leadership role, this week. She's the first woman to serve in this supervisor position at her department.
“It’s hard really to put into words. It’s been a long time working hard, being patient, making it through my patrol years, making it through my detective years, and really preparing myself to become a leader here.”
As of this spring, she will have been working 22 years in this field. It was her dream to be a police officer, as a child.
“Since I can remember anyway.”
She hopes this sets an example for young girls, statewide.
“Don’t ever let anyone tell you, ‘you can’t.’”