This rappelling police dog is charming us silly

The Vancouver Police Department shared a photo to its Facebook page last week that gave the Internet a glimpse of what it takes to be a police dog. It looks pretty tough, you guys. TBH we don’t think we could hack it. Actually, the German Shepherd in the picture looks like he might be having some doubts.

The dog’s name is Niko. K-9 Officer Niko, officially. Yes, he’s got a rank and everything, because Niko is a badass. The photo shows Niko learning how to rappel, which basically means that soon he’ll know how to scale walls and get back down again. No worries, he’s safely attached to his human partner with cables. The adorbs leg hug is just insurance. (Or maybe he just needed a hug. We know how it that goes, Niko. We know.)

Niko is actually cool with learning amazing stunts like rappelling. As the Vancouver PD says on Facebook, “Our canine officers are well trained, well selected, and, most importantly, well loved by their handlers. We test dozens (if not hundreds) of prospective police dogs before finding the ones best suited for the VPD. The dogs we select are social and have high drive, and are very valued members of our department… Rappelling is a vital skill for our tactical teams to have, and it tests both handler and dog. In the training scenario in the photo, PSD Niko was introduced slowly to the task, and his handler rewarded him with praise and a game of tug-o-war afterwards (you can see the toy sticking out of the officer’s back pocket).”

That’s still seriously impressive. My dog won’t even jump on the bed for a toy, much less climb walls. Way to go, Niko. And take heart. Even if he looks a tad bit pitiful in the pic, this dog is actually a super hero in training. Trust.

We bow down, Niko. Vancouver is safe in your capable hands…er, paws.

[Image via Vancouver Police Department on Facebook.]