By Donald Dewey
Photos by William Baker

t's standard urban wisdom that one of the best ways to meet people is to get yourself a dog.

From the most casual conversations around the fire hydrant about age, breed and litters, romances, children, and entire dynasties have developed. The canine effect is the same when you’re a cop working with the canine section of the Special Operations Division. The only conspicuous difference is in the breed of dog: no poodles, dachshunds or even great Danes need apply.

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Take P.O. Bill Saunier and his German Shepherd Mac. Working a special patrol outside City Hall recently, Saunier attracted more passersby than a legion of break-dancers. Or more accurately, Mac attracted them. And because of his black color, there was a lot of surprise, even skepticism, that the 75-pound animal was in fact a shepherd — the breed usually associated with the gray-brown Rin Tin Tin variety. Within a single hour, four strollers stopped long enough to inquire whether Saunier was gripping the leash on a Belgian Shepherd, Belgians apparently standing in for whatever breed the questioner had never actually seen. “No, it’s a German,” Saunier kept assuring them. “You sure it’s not a Belgian?” one adamant woman asked. “Germans don’t normally look like that.” “No, it’s a German,” Saunier replied. “I don’t know,” the woman said. “Sure looks like a Belgian to me. At least, they tell me that’s what a Belgian looks like.” And off she strode, convinced the NYPD didn’t know one part of Europe from another.

But continental bloodlines are usually the least of Saunier’s problems when he and Mac are meeting the public. More commonly, passersby are prone to forgetting why a dog such as Mac would be stationed near City Hall in the first place. Two tourists from Chicago, for instance, got a fast reminder that the canine team was not auditioning for a sequel to Best in Show when they came charging down unexpectedly to the cop’s left all with eager hands extended for petting. Mac’s bared teeth and accompanying growl notified them that police dogs were police dogs and they don’t like people swooping down on the blind side of their masters. Even worse was the genius who decided the best way to make new friends was to come to a stop about five feet in front of the dog and just glare at him. Saunier needed his full grip on the leash and his own bark to the moron to keep walking to prevent serious mayhem.

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