The Office of the Maine Fire Marshal has acquired its third four-legged arson investigator.
Fire Investigator Andrew Whitney and his arson dog Cheeto recently graduated from a four-week Arson Dog Training Program sponsored by State Farm.
Whitney and K9 Cheeto were one of 13 teams from across the country that attended the training, said Maine Department of Public Safety spokesperson Shannon Moss.
Cheeto is a 2-year-old, male, yellow Lab mix who comes from Paws with a Cause in Wayland, Mich.
Cheeto was originally raised to be a disability dog but had too strong of a nose and work drive to be a service animal, Moss said. “The Office of State Fire Marshal would like to thank State Farm for their ongoing support,” said Rich McCarthy, Maine’s fire marshal. "We are excited to have Cheeto join our fire marshal family. Cheeto joins State Farm K9 Shannon and K9 Harry, who is from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. (ATF)."