The Bulletin
10 April 2015
OLD LYME — Ruger, a yellow Labrador retriever, has a newly trained nose.
Friendly and energetic, he’s accompanying his handler, Environmental Conservation Police Officer Bill Logiodice, from fishing hole to fishing hole today in search of contraband: illegally caught fish.
Today is the first day of fishing season, when anglers hit lakes, ponds, rivers and streams. Almost all of them follow the rules, Environmental Conservation Capt. Ryan Healy said.
But a few anglers catch more fish than the legally allowed daily limit or catch undersized fish or catch fish out of season. And in order to avoid fines of $75 or higher, “they do get creative in ways to hide them,” Healy said.
That’s where Ruger and Logiodice come in. Along with two other state Department of Energy and Environmental Protection K-9 teams — Saydee and Officer Holly Bernier and Hunter and Officer Karen Reilly — they just finished three weeks of training in detecting hidden fish.