The Moose Jaw High School Football League's oldest rivalry hits the field on Tuesday afternoon as the Central Cyclones meet up with the Peacock Tornadoes at Gutheridge Field.

Both teams sit at 1-1 heading into their Week 3 showdown.

The Cyclones are coming off a 38-14 loss to the Yorkton Raiders on Friday night, but they’re confident that they can rebound quickly.

"I thought we played pretty well, but we'll bounce back, we just want to get better every game and we'll see Yorkton again, we all know that," said Central receiver Josh Reidy.

"It was a good test for us, we wanted to see how we matched up (against Yorkton) going into the rest of our season."

The Tornadoes did some rebounding of their own when they picked up a 36-12 win over the Estevan Elecs this past Friday at Gutheridge Field.

Peacock will bring a strong running game and a usually stout defence into their match-up with the Cyclones. Reidy said he confident that they can line up against the Tornadoes.

"Our pass game is really good, our D-line has improved a lot and they're only going to get stronger, so going into Peacock, I like our chances," said Reidy.

Peacock and Central kick-off at 4 p.m. on Tuesday.

Also on Tuesday, the 0-2 Vanier Vikings head into Estevan looking for their first win of the season against the 0-1 Elecs. They kick-off at 4 p.m. The 2-0 Swift Current Colts will play host to the 0-1 Weyburn Eagles on Tuesday as well.

Female hockey players in Moose Jaw received a jumpstart on the season on Sunday afternoon.

The Moose Jaw Minor Hockey Association hosted the Mavericks Fall Festival at the Kinsmen Arena, giving new players, and those returning, an opportunity to hit the ice before the season gets underway.

"We have a tremendous vibe in the building, everybody is very excited," said Eric Campbell, organizer of the two Mavericks Festivals in the past year. "A lot of girls have come back, a lot of girls are new to hockey coming here and they get a chance to skate, they get a chance to be with other girls that play and we've accomplished quite a bit in the past two festivals."

The first Mavericks Festival went during last season and served a celebration of a successful year for the Mavericks female hockey program. The purpose of both events has been the same, to get more girls playing hockey and give them a supportive environment to try the sport.

"You get a chance to come out before tryouts or practice, hit a puck, skate with no pressure, have some fun and realize why people love hockey so much," said Campbell. "When you get a chance to do that with no pressure, your parents cheering you on and everybody here being so supportive, it’s a good thing for female hockey and for each individual girl."

Local female hockey players of all ages took to the ice at the Kinsmen Arena on Sunday for the Mavericks Fall Festival. (Photo: Marc Smith)

Female hockey is growing in Moose Jaw. The city has produced a number of high-level players over the past decade, but they're seeing numbers rise in the young age groups with two novice teams for the first time this season.

"We've got a lot of really great coaches who are helping out and a lot of strong female leaders that are helping out and that's what it's about, it's about having fun at the rink and with these strong female coaches that we have in the Mavericks program, it's starting to pay dividends and that's important," said Campbell.

Campbell wants to keep the momentum that they've been building over the past year going throughout this season. The hope is that they will be able to have more festivals moving forward.

"Minor Hockey has been so great about making this a possibility for us and really pushing this program forward and with their support, we'll do these as much as there is a demand and that's what this is all about," said Campbell.

"You look around at all the faces and everybody is smiling and happy, all the girls are laughing and cheering, and that's what hockey is all about."

Emergency outpatient services won't be available for most of the week in Herbert.

This is caused by physician unavailability and the temporary disruption to the Herbert Emergency Department has already begun and will last until Friday at 7 pm.

The Saskatchewan Health Authority advises residents to call 9-1-1 if there is an emergency, and an ambulance will be dispatched immediately. They also said in a release that non-urgent health-related questions can be directed to the provincial HealthLine by calling 8-1-1.

Another option for resident's and closest emergency room in the area, would be along highway 1 and located in Swift Current. 

A photo radar pilot project that was partially launched to try and deal with a deadly intersection on the north side of Moose Jaw will continue - and potentially be expanded.

SGI has released their final report into the program with Minister Responsible for SGI, Joe Hargrave, saying it was a success.

"We know that average speeds were reduced where there was photo speed enforcement. Speed actually decreased. Injuries, casualties and incidents at the same place were reduced per-year. That's why we've decided to make this a permanent thing."

For Moose Jaw, when the pilot was first launched, 4% of all vehicles that passed through the intersection of 9th and the Trans Canada Highway were speeding. Following two years of having the photo cameras in place, that number has dropped to right around 1%.

Minister Hargrave explains a traffic committee will be formed to review applications from communities.

"What we're going to do is we're going to establish a traffic safety committee. Communities, RMs, municipalities, small towns, villages, cities, will all be able to apply to the committee and can say 'We need a camera here,' and it will be brought and reviewed by the committee."

While some applications might be for cameras, Hargrave says some simpler traffic control devices might be used, such as speed bumps in school zones, or flashing lights to draw attention to the posted speed limit.

"Per standard tickets, 25% goes to the GRF [General Revenue Fund], then the expenses come off, and of the remaining amount – 50% of it will go to the municipality that has the camera, and 50% will go toward the traffic safety fund. That will be their budget."

Come January 1, 2019, the Provincial Traffic Safety Fund will receive 75% of all ticket revenue from photo radar cameras that are placed on highways. The remaining 25% will be allocated to the GRF.

Residents who frequent the stretch of road north of Moose Jaw will be pleased to hear there will soon be upgrades. 

Recently, the Provincial Government announced that they will be adding another lane for drivers to pass eachother on Highway 2. 

"We actually plan on putting one set of passing lanes in there, and it'll be built about 7km outside of the city of Moose Jaw; that should help flow traffic more easily between Moose Jaw and Buffalo Provincial Park," explained Highways and Infrastructure Minister, Loir Carr. "There's an increase in traffic there and especially in the summer months it's even higher because of the Provincial Park, so we just thought that this might be a little safer for everyone to get back and forth."

 She noted that the choice to create passing lanes was a cost-effective and smooth process, as there was much less red tape than they would normally have to cut through. 

"Passing lanes can be done at a much lesser cost than twinning the highway and it happens much quicker. With Twinning you have to worry about questions of land and of course all the extra work that goes into twinning highways. With passing lanes, a lot of the time we can just move ahead, and we were fortunate enough that we already had this land that we're going to be using so we just decided to do it and away we go."

According to the province, about 3,700 vehicles use highway 2 just north of the Friendly City on a daily basis, which is an increase in the area from years past. 

"There could be a number of reasons, maybe people are commuting a little bit more often, I'm not really sure," added Minister Carr. "We just know that since 2008 the numbers have increased by 600 vehicles a day, and we also know that road is very narrow so it's just nice to have this extra room to move around."

She also said that when passing lanes are added to a highway it can bring down the number of collisions in the area by 25% and that it's always about making sure our families get home safe. 

It was a little busier than usual at the pumps on Tuesday, as residents who filled up their gas tanks at Moose Jaw Co-op could feel good knowing it was helping a local non-profit group.

10 cents from every litre sold in the Friendly City went to Moose Jaw's Families For Change, as part of Moose Jaw Co-op's Fuel Good Day.

Mike Bachiu, Program Coordinator for Moose Jaw Families for Change explained what their organization does:

"We offer support for people with varying abilities. We currently run 3 group homes on South Hill and we just opened a community centre. Right now we have 4 residents per group home, so 12 [in total], but we're expanding into some independent living support and things like that."

Last year the Moose Jaw Co-op was able to donate over $11,000 to the Moose Jaw Humane Society.

After much thought and consideration, Moose Jaw Pride has decided they would like to welcome a refugee. 

Last week the local Pride group held a meeting for anyone interested in joining a potential board that would be in charge of the administrative work in bringing over a refugee or a family of refugees. It wasn't long into the gathering that attendees had decided during a joyful, but serious talk that this was feasible and something they wanted to move forward with.

"It's not necessarily that we would bring someone who is LGBT, we could anyone who is available within this U.N. (United Nations) approved refugee list," explained Joe Wickenhauser, Executive Director for Moose Jaw Pride. "We're really excited about doing that realizing that it's the right thing to do, to help people that are fleeing persecution or fleeing for their lives."

Part of the reason the local group was able to take on this exciting new endeavor was that the financial aspect was already covered by the Shapiro Foundation for the BVOR (Blended Visa Office-Referred Program) fund. Wickenhauser said the Shapiro Foundation offered 1.1 million dollars to organizations and businesses across the country to help aid in making sure Canada was accepting all the refugees they can each year. 

He noted sometimes refugees don't make it to a safe country when they're attempting to flee because one of the two parts isn't completed, either they don't have someone to take on the administrative aspect or the funds aren't in hand. 

"Unfortunately not every year do all of those people get placed and so I think the fund is really intended to try and help place those families that Canada has already said that 'we'd be willing to place them if there are people who are willing to do that settlement work and the funding is there'."

Kelly Carty is the chair of the Moose Jaw Pride board and willing be apart of the driving force to help make someones dream or living in a safe country come true. She noted that it's going to take an army to pull this together, perhaps a small loving one, but they could still use some help. 

"We would welcome people who could help us in various aspects of the preparations because they could come as early as in two months. They might be here by December and that's a lot of things we have to figure. We'll have to contact, most likely Moose Jaw Housing, to see if there's something available but we have to find out if we're getting one person or three people or four people."

Both Carty and Wickenhauser encourage anyone who would like to be apart of the board or help with the settlement of the future refugees you're asked to contact Moose Jaw Pride. 

Ethan Johnson threw for four touchdowns as the Central Cyclones pulled off a 28-16 win over the Peacock Tornadoes in the Moose Jaw High School Football League on Tuesday at Gutheridge Field.

The win allowed Central to bounce back from Friday’s loss in Yorkton and improved their record to 2-1 on the year, while Peacock fell to 1-2 with the loss.

"In Yorkton, we had a lot of mental mistakes and just missed opportunities and I feel like we really capitalized on those this week," said Johnson.

"We're in the tough part of the season, we have three games in eight days, so getting the win in this one was huge."

Johnson finished 17-of-24 for 334 yards with four passing touchdowns, including two to receiver C.J. Vincent, who finished with five catches for 103 yards.

The Cyclones finished off their opening drive with a 10-yard touchdown by receiver Mathew Dyck, who had three catches for 56 yards in the win.

Riley Seaborn put Central up 14-2 early in the second quarter when he broke free for a 61-yard pass and run. Seaborn finished with four catches for 90 yards for the Cyclones.

Josh Reidy also had three catches for 54 yards in the win.

"I have a ton of confidence in my receivers, they're all playmakers, they're all great at what they do... They make my job pretty easy," said Johnson.

Peacock quarterback Dallas Lister puts his shoulder into Central defensive back Bryce Aubin during Tuesday's meeting at Gutheridge Field. (Photo: Marc Smith)

The game was a clash of two styles as Central used its air attack to move the ball quickly downfield, while Peacock continues to pound the ball with quarterback Dallas Lister and running back Kayde Shymko.

Lister would finish 150 rushing yards and one touchdown on 23 carries, while he also completed 4-of-12 passes for 54 yards and a touchdown. Shymko posted 83 yards on 13 carries in the loss. He also added one catch for seven yards.

Central grade 10 defensive back Kael Nichols said he felt they did a good job of limiting the Tornadoes' rushing attack in the game.

"We just played hard and did our job," he said. "It felt good to get out on the field and play hard."

After Central went up 14-2, Peacock responded with a five-yard touchdown for Lister to make it a five-point game with 4:44 to go in the first half.

The Cyclones made sure that they took back control and they used two long passes to Vincent to quickly strike for a 23-yard touchdown and take a 21-9 advantage at halftime.

Neither team could break through in the third quarter, but Johnson found Vincent again for a 32-yard score early in the fourth, which put the game out of reach.

Lister connected with fullback Landon Schier for an eight-yard touchdown pass.

While it came in a loss, Schier said it was nice to get his first touchdown grab of the season, "It felt pretty good, I've been practicing a lot and it was nice to show it," he said.

Central defensive back Kael Nichols knocks the ball away from Peacock receiver Hayden Tollefson during Tuesday's showdown at Gutheridge Field. (Photo: Marc Smith)

Central played a complete game to stay in front of Peacock throughout, but Schier feels that they're right there with them.

"We did our best, we're still a young team and learning a lot of things and learning our positions, so feel like we stuck in there good, but they had the upper hand with their older players," he said.

The Cyclones are in the middle of a busy stretch and bouncing back from their loss in Yorkton was key for the team.

"It's huge for us, we're in the tough part of the season, we have three games in eight days, so this one was really huge for us," said Johnson.

Central will be back on the field on Saturday to host Swift Current, while Peacock is off until next Saturday, Sept. 29.

Vanier Falls in Estevan

The Vanier Vikings traveled to Estevan on Tuesday looking to put their first notch in the win column, but instead, it was the Elecs who came out on top for the first time in two years.

Estevan scored 26 points in the fourth quarter to pull off a 26-7 win over Vanier on Tuesday afternoon.

Xander Montgomery opened the scoring for Vanier with a one-yard touchdown run early in the second quarter and that's the way that the score stayed until the fourth.

The Elecs cut Vanier's lead to 7-6 when Jonah Bachorcik hauled in a seven-yard touchdown catch with 11:43 to play in the game.

Bachorcik would score the go-ahead points for Estevan on a three-yard touchdown catch with 1:57 remaining.

The Elecs would continue to add to that lead when Rylan Erdelyan caught a 21-yard touchdown just 1:01 later to make it 20-7.

Finally, with just 27 seconds remaining, Elecs running back Hunter Eagles scored a 10-yard touchdown to seal the win.

Tyler Lorenz ran for 75 yards in the loss for Vanier, while Montgomery finished with 34 yards and a touchdown.

Bachorcik finished with five catches for 54 yards and two touchdowns for Estevan, while Eagles ran for 68 yards and a touchdown on 11 carries in the win. Erdelyan also had three catches for 45 yards and a touchdown.

Quarterback Kaleb Bechtold finished 15-of-23 for 157 yards and three touchdowns.

Vanier is now 0-3 on the year, while Estevan sits at 1-1. Both teams will be back on the field coming up on Saturday as Vanier hosts 2-0 Yorkton, while Estevan welcomes in the Weyburn Eagles.

Weyburn lost 32-16 to the Colts in Swift Current on Tuesday. The Colts improved to 3-0 this season with the victory.

Rhett Vavra continued his strong start to the season with three catches for 43 yards. He also returned a punt 78 yards for a touchdown.

It's not the first time and it looks like they still don't have it figured out. The Ministry of Government Relations is responding after the SaskAlert push notification for Sunday's Amber Alert was sent out three hours after it had been issued by RCMP.

The push notifications are supposed to go to all mobile devices but some didn't get it until well after police started searching for the missing child, while others didn't get it at all.

Officials are blaming a technical issue with the National Public Alerting System and are promising to get to the bottom of it.

There was a full schedule in the Moose Jaw High School Senior Volleyball League on Tuesday night.

In the boys' division, the Vanier Vikings cruised to a straight-set win (25-17, 25-23, 25-13) over the Peacock Toilers to improve to 2-0 this season. Peacock drops to 1-1.

The Cornerstone Falcons also improved to 2-0 with a four-set win (25-20, 25-10, 22-25, 25-16) over the Briercrest Christian Academy Cougars in Caronport. B.C.A. is now 0-2 this season.

The Central Cyclones won for the first time this season, edging the Avonlea Eagles in five sets (23-25, 19-25, 25-9, 25-20, 15-13). Central is now 1-1, while Avonlea drops to 0-2.

There were also two games in the girls' division.

The B.C.A Cougars fought their way to a five-set win (25-14, 22-25, 25-12, 21-25, 15-6) over the Cornerstone Falcons. The win puts the Cougars at 1-1, while the Falcons are 0-2

At Vanier, the Peacock Toilers secured a four-set win (25-21, 25-27, 25-21, 25-17) over the Spirits to improve to 2-0. Vanier is 0-1.

The next league action is coming up on Thursday when the senior girls league hits the court for two games. B.C.A. hosts Vanier at 6:30 p.m., while Peacock heads over to Central at 7 p.m.

The junior girls league opens its season on Wednesday night with games at Vanier, Peacock, and Central, starting at 6:20 p.m.

Facing a shortage of staff, the Canadian Air Force is going to have to find a way to fill empty spots over the next few years.

An internal report from the Department of National Defence started to make its rounds to start the week, explaining that they're short pilots, mechanics, operators and other trained personnel. Officials are also concerned about burn out in their current staff due to an increased workload.

A request for details about 15 Wing Moose Jaw and what this could mean to the future of the local training base was transferred to Ottawa and then denied.

Moose Jaw's Chantz Petruic had a goal and two points for the Yorkton Terriers on Tuesday night, but it wasn't enough.

Yorkton fell to 0-2-0-0 thanks to a 9-2 to loss to the undefeated Estevan Bruins, who improved to 3-0-0-0 to start the season in the Saskatchewan Junior Hockey League.

Former Moose Jaw Generals forward Jared Legien also scored in the loss for Yorkton, while Moose Jaw's Branden Klatt was out of the lineup.

Another former General, Tyson Manz picked up one assist for the Bruins.

The Terriers are off until Friday when they host the Weyburn Red Wings.

Coming up on Wednesday, Chase Lacombe and the Humboldt Broncos are in Wilcox to face the Notre Dame Hounds, while Eric Soar and the Melville Millionaires head to Weyburn to battle the Red Wings.

Brayden Burke saw his first NHL preseason action on Tuesday night as he suited up in the Arizona Coyotes' 4-2 win over the Los Angeles Kings.

Burke had two hits in 9:48 minutes of ice time during the game.

The Moose Jaw Warriors alum signed a three-year entry-level contract with the Coyotes earlier this year.

Warriors defenceman Josh Brook will be in the lineup for the Montreal Canadiens when they go up against the Florida Panthers at the Bell Centre on Wednesday at 5:30 p.m.

Justin Almeida will also make his NHL preseason debut on Wednesday when he lines up for the Pittsburgh Penguins against the Red Wings in Detroit at 5:30 p.m.

Also, former Warriors captain Brett Howden will suit up with the New York Rangers against the Philadelphia Flyers at 5 p.m. on Wednesday.

Trailblazing a new industry isn't easy and those embarking on legalized cannabis know all too well how hard it can be. In less than a month, shops will be opening across the country to legally sell for the first time and there are already reports of a shortage of product.

In Moose Jaw, Spirit Leaf is one of two locations that have received a license to sell and are working to establish their storefront. CEO and President Darren Bondar explains they're a publicly traded, national company but with local franchisees. Spirit Leaf wants their stores to feel welcoming according to CEO and President Darren Bondar

"We think the franchise model is effective because it allows local owners to be in tune with their communities," said Bondar, adding that the franchise model will also help with the current strain on getting product ahead of October 17th when cannabis becomes legal.

"It's a little challenging in Saskatchewan because there is no centralized buying agency so it's really up to us and our franchise partners, but being part of this bigger picture with Spirit Leaf, we're able to get supply for our local partners."

Spirit Leaf is now working on getting their store in Civic Centre Plaza renovated for opening day and Bondar believes things are on track for that to happen. He expects a strong response from the community and they'll be hosting a special kick-off event.

The other dispensary that has been awarded a business license through City Hall is New Leaf Emporium that will be located on the 600 block of Main Street.

Dalton Hamaliuk got a late start, but he was able to make a good first impression after joining the Moose Jaw Warriors last week.

Following his release from the Spokane Chiefs, Hamaliuk was scooped up by the Warriors and posted a goal and two points in the team's final two preseason games over the weekend.

The 20-year-old defenceman said he's happy to be receiving another shot to continue his WHL career here in Moose Jaw.

"This is an awesome place, I've only been here for a week now, but I'm really enjoying it, I’ve got an awesome billet family and all the boys here are really welcoming," said Hamaliuk. "The guys are really awesome guys in the room and they're leading me along here."

The Warriors started training camp with three overagers on their roster, meaning Hamaliuk will join a group that includes returnees Brandon Schuldhaus and Tristin Langan, as well as goalie Brodan Salmond.

After originally being selected in the second round by the Chiefs, Hamaliuk played in 213 games in Spokane, posting six goals and 37 points with a minus-14 rating.

"Coming here is something new for me, but all the guys have been really good, they're teaching me the systems and helping me out when I need to be told where to be on the ice," said Hamaliuk.

The Leduc, AB product brings more size, standing in at six-foot-two and 216 pounds, and a physical presence to the Warriors' already-loaded d-core.

Hamaliuk said he's trying to show the Warriors' brass what he can bring to the team this season.

"First impressions make a big difference, so I've came in here, trying to do my best, not overthink it and play my game," he said.

"I just want to be physical, be a solid defenceman, try to get pucks moving north and keep it simple on the ice."

The Warriors have until next month to make a final decision on their three overage players for the season.

Moose Jaw will open the regular season coming up on Friday in Brandon and their home opener goes on Saturday at Mosaic Place.

There's no better way to treat yourself and treat the local health foundation with a donation, by buying a smile cookie.

Running until Sunday, Tim Hortons locations across Canada will be running their annual Smile Cookie Campaign. They will be selling chocolate chunk cookies with icing for only a dollar all week, with all proceeds going towards hospitals, food banks and charities. For Moose Jaw, the local health foundation has been selected as the beneficiary and Foundation Executive Director Kelly McElree can't thank them enough.

"We're just thankful for everyone who comes to Tim Hortons to buy a cookie because every time that you buy a cookie you're going to bring a smile to a patient that needs orthopaedic surgery at our hospital."

Money raised in Moose Jaw will be going to towards a new C-Arm as part of the foundation's orthopaedic campaign. Last year just over $12,000 was raised for the Moose Jaw Health Foundation from smile cookies.

Reaching out to someone while going through a difficult life experience is tough, and it can be even more difficult when you have Autism or Aspergers. For these conditions, there often isn't much support available, especially when it comes to working with others who are going through the same challenges as yourself.

There is now an Aspergers peer support group that is held in Moose Jaw put on by the Canadian Mental Health Association.

Tina Dolcetti has Autism as well as a university education, and she works at the Moose Jaw Public Library. She spoke about the challenges that come along with the diagnosis.

"Often people with high functioning Autism can be very bright, get through university or complete their education. But then it can create difficulties you don't expect like being able to keep a job, being able to have a relationship, meaningful friendships, stuff like that."

The group is for adults and gives people with Aspergers or Autism a place to meet, and gives them somewhere to talk about their successes and the challenges that come with every day life.

Darrell Downton lives in Moose Jaw and has been diagnosed with Autism. He detailed why support groups like this are so important.

"For a lot of people there's just not any services, because we're high functioning - they like our services but they don't like helping us because they figure we don't need help. And that's wrong. That's why I think this group is so valuable."

Downton says he's seen large changes in many of the people who attend the group program.

"I've seen transformation in the people's lives that have come. People that feel isolated and lonely. I've seen their lives take off by having this support group. For me, I find it very valuable because there just doesn't seem to be any support for us. I think it serves a very useful purpose and I'm very excited to be a part of that."

Meetings are held the last Monday of each month at the Moose Jaw Public library and run from 7-8:30.

A law firm in Regina is in the middle of a class action lawsuit against Ticketmaster after allegations that the company manipulates their inventory to raise the prices of tickets.

Merchant Law has alleged that the ticket company hides certain tickets from appearing for sale, which gives the illusion that the concert or show is almost sold out. Because of that, it raises the price of tickets left, and then puts the previously hidden tickets on sale for a higher price as well.

Those aren’t the only allegations against the ticket selling giant. Along with Merchant, the Competition Bureau has questioned Ticketmaster's business practices as well.

Just like when you're renovating your home, you never know what you're going to face until you start a project.

That has certainly been the case with underground infrastructure work in Moose Jaw this year, and more aging infrastructure problems have impacted another project. This time, valves needed to control the flow of water into the high service reservoir have been found to be seized, preventing the brand new water line from Buffalo Pound from being connected to the rest of the system.

"As it sits right now the high service reservoir isn't capable of being operated as intended," explained City Engineer Josh Mickleborough. "To conduct the work on the Buffalo Pound transmission line with respect to the connection to the reservoirs, we need to gain isolation of those reservoirs. Meaning we can turn them off, drain them and then connect the new Buffalo Pound transmission line to the reservoir."

The project aims to replace the line that delivers drinking water from the lake north of the city, connecting to the rest of the water system, but it needs to join the reservoir and the valves control the flow of water. Since they don't work, they can't connect the new line.

"We've already performed the inspections of our two other reservoirs and to get into this one which is two-thirds of the total capacity of all of our water reservoirs, so it's a very important structure," added City Councillor Chris Warren.

Mickleborough says they've found a way around the issue so at least the job can get done. 

"Feed it from the northeast reservoir, replace the 20-inch valves, and the inter-zone valves, then connect the Buffalo Pound transmission line for one chamber, clean and disinfect that storage chamber and put it back into service while doing that same thing to the other storage chamber."

Failing infrastructure has been the story as of late, with a number of projects running into issues as they dig up the streets to make upgrades. This obstacle also came with a price tag of $240,000 to make the necessary repairs. 

Last week two new recruits for our local police force made their debut at an open house event. 

The Moose Jaw Police Service is beefing up their K9 Unit, but shortly after they were introduced to the public, one of two new dogs was sent back as the force quickly discovered some issues. 

"We had two dogs and two handlers, unfortunately by the end of the week, one of the dogs had to be returned to the broker in Minnesota as he had health issues in his back end," explained Cst. Chad Scheske, Canine Coordinator for the local Police Service. "At the start of training obviously, we can't have any issues with the dog so as a result he was returned. We will get a replacement for him but unfortunately, that won't happen until the spring."Cst. Chad Scheske and his K9 partner Siren.

However, Cst. Curtis Amiot and his K9 partner Argo remain in training and are progressing well. The Police Service held an open call a little while back for officers to try out for a spot in this section of the department. Cst. Amiot was the successful candidate and not only is completing his own training but is also helping his new partner Argo to do the same. 

There's plenty of reasons as to why the Police Service made the call to more than double the current amount of dogs and handlers in the K9 Unit. Prior to the newest recruits, there wasn't enough of them to share between all rotating shifts, which meant in some situations an officer and dog were called out when they were supposed to be off-duty.

Cst.Scheske has been in the K9 Unit just short of nine years and said he knows just as well as anyone that it takes much longer for an officer to get out of bed, get his gear on and grab his four-legged partner to get to the scene of a crime rather than someone who is on duty already.  

"If we can get that person contained and (the officer and dog) can get there in two minutes that increases the likelihood of a capture or finding that person greatly. It will definitely increase our chances of catching bad people. Also, the dog is a deterrent, a deterrent for crime, if people know that there's always a dog on maybe they're going to take a second thought about what they're doing."

Another few positives that he noted are that the Police Service doesn't have to pay someone over time to respond to a call during their time off as well as the Officer and dog will have fresh eyes coming into the situation. 

Most people know there's no bond like the one of a man and his furry best friend, which Cst. Scheske added is always very important during training and throughout the dog's career, they must always think of each other as partners. Noting that sometimes an officer in the K9 Unit will spend more time with the dog than anyone else. 

"You're trusting in your dog, he's the one that's going to tell you where the bad guy went. You don't have the nose that he has, so you have to trust your dog. Also, there are situations where you're going to have your dog (with you) and it can be very serious, whether it's a firearm or weapon-related call and you're going to trust in him that he's going to, if necessary, put his life on the line."

With one dog being sent back early it leaves an empty spot in the unit, Cst. Scheske said there will be another dog ready for training coming in the spring, along with a third dog that was already planned to arrive at that time.