Bloodhound puppies named by students visit Hammond Hill

Hunter, a bloodhound puppy being trained for duty with the Aiken County Sheriff's Office, got a massive dose of friendly attention at Hammond Hill Elementary School Friday afternoon, by way of a contest held in local schools.

"Pin the Pups" offered students the chance to pick a name for puppies in a new litter, and Hammond Hill fifth-grader Shelby Rucker, 10, made the winning suggestion. Hunter and some littermates visited the school Friday to get acquainted with a few dozen neighbors.

Recalling the contest, Shelby said, "The whole fifth grade picked out a boy name and a girl name. Our boy name was 'Hunter' and our girl name was 'Ruby,' and 'Hunter' won."

She added, "They said that it was going to be tracking people that were lost and everything, so I thought they'd be hunting for people, and I just thought, 'Hunter.'"

Shelby also offered a description.

"He's really playful, and he licks a lot."

Lt. Chad Hyler, with the Aiken County Sheriff's Office, provided the pooches' escort. The agency now has 12 dogs, including six 12-week-old puppies being assessed for future work, he said.

"We like to train them up to six months, to know if they're going to be where they need them to be. We'll always keep them, whether it's for breeding or to help other agencies out, but they start at 10 weeks old, and usually by six months we know where they're going to be."

Also along for Friday's visit were puppies Diesel, a male, and Frankie, a female named in memory of Lt. Michael Frank, who served as the agency's spokesman.

"These boy and girl dogs are here for them," Hyler said, explaining the idea of bringing the dogs to meet some young neighbors.

"They're here not only for the bad guys but for good, as well," he said, adding that "these dogs are trained off pure love."

He confirmed that the bloodhounds are extremely friendly.

"They like to see people ... They're not fighting dogs. They're OK to pet. We know there are kids out there who are afraid of dogs. This is another way to let you know dogs are OK."