LITTLE VALLEY – The newest member of the Cattaraugus County Sheriff’s Department is Nichols, a dual purpose four-legged deputy.
County Sheriff Timothy Whitcomb announced the two-year-old German Shepherd started training with Deputy Tim Pence in April.
Nichols is trained in narcotics and patrol and certified in tracking and article search.
Both deputies are members of the Special Response Team and have helped the Southern Tier Regional Drug Task Force on several cases already.
This is the first time a canine was exclusively assigned to a road patrol for the Department. Pence and Nichols participate in maintenance training one day weekly and collaborate with other area canine teams during the training.
Whitcomb thanked Randolph Veterinary Clinic for its services, Purina for the dog food, and Amish Valley Sheds for Nichols housing.
Whitcomb and Pence named the dog Nichols in honor of former Undersheriff Billy Nichols, who died in 2015 after 30 years of service with the Department.