FREEHOLD – Say hello to Moose the newest member of the Monmouth County Sheriff’s Office who was hired to sniff out crime.
Sheriff Shaun Golden welcomed the canine to the Monmouth County Sheriff’s Office Law Enforcement Division. The 10-month-old bloodhound was certified by the Cape May County Sheriff’s Office K9 Training Academy, along with his handler S/O Joseph Szotak during a recent ceremony.
“Moose will be a significant asset to our K9 Unit, since his sole purpose is to locate individuals,” Sheriff Golden said. “Through tracking and trailing, this highly trained K9, with a stronger sense of smell than any other breed, will assist the sheriff’s officers and local police departments in apprehending criminals, locating missing persons and those with special needs.”
The Cape May County Sheriff’s Office K-9 training program has a rigorous curriculum and hands-on approach, ensuring that K-9s and their handlers are prepared for real-world scenarios.
While training for 13 weeks, K9 Moose and S/O Joseph Szotak worked closely to build a strong, cohesive partnership.
Training consists of tracking scent in rural, urban and residential areas and through bodies of water, the woods, fields, creeks and garbage, as well as parking lots and busy roadways.
Photo courtesy Monmouth County Sheriff’s Office
Bloodhounds are trained to track skin cells. It’s estimated that a bloodhound’s nose has 230 million olfactory cells, or “scent receptors,” which is 40 times the number in humans, the Sheriff’s Office stated.
“Many thanks to Sheriff Golden and the Monmouth County Sheriff’s Office for providing Moose and me with this great opportunity,” S/O Szotak said. “Moose’s determination and commitment during training was outstanding and I’m confident that he will be a great addition to the K9 Unit.”
As of 2025, the Monmouth County Sheriff’s Office has nine k9s on its team as well as eight sheriff’s officers. This includes four explosive detections teams, two narcotics detections teams and three blood hound tracking teams.
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