10/25/2026
Photo by Jamie Mortland | Stylized Image Photography
Meet Our October 2026 Calendar Celebrities!
Officer Curt Grosz and K9 Echo
Sartell Police Department, MN
What first drew you to K9 work, and how did you become a handler?
"I started in Sartell in about 2015, and it's always been an interest of mine. At the time, our department in Sartell did not have a K9 program. So it was something I was looking forward to and thought I wanted to do, but we didn't have a plan at that point. When we found out we were going to reestablish our K9 program after about 15 or 16 years, I jumped at the opportunity.
We got K9 Echo. He was born in Saskatchewan, Canada, and then brought to the US. He's a long-haired German shepherd. Currently, he's 5 years old. He's certified in tracking, narcotics, and apprehension. He kind of does it all."
How did you and Echo come to be partners, and what do you remember about the day you met?
"Up until meeting him, I had only seen pictures. When I met him, I wasn't sure, because sometimes you can't be sure about the temperament of police K9s. They're working dogs; they're not pets. But he has a very good temperament. He's very happy and outgoing, with a welcoming kind of personality. So it made it really easy to bring him into my life. He rides around with me for 12 hours a day and comes home with me at night, so I probably spend more time with Echo than anyone else."
What was Echo like when you were first partnered, and how does that shape your partnership today?
"Things definitely change. At first, I didn't really know what to expect, coming from a department that didn't really have a K9 program. I didn't really have any meaningful exposure to K9s, so it was kind of a shot in the dark, and he did well. But we had our ups and downs. Now, looking back, he is very much in sync with me. It's so much so that even my wife tries to give him commands, and it's hit-or-miss whether he listens to her. He is very much connected to me."
Can you share a call or moment where Echo's work made a real difference?
"We've had several. I'll share two. This was probably two years ago, a year and a half. Echo is trained in tracking, and we got a call about a five-year-old who had left home. He'd gone out the door, and the parents didn't know where he was. It was getting dark out, so it was obviously a scary situation for a parent. We had Echo and a drone overhead, and we started looking, using his nose. We found a five-year-old and brought him back to his parents, which was super cool.
In another instance, we had a dangerous person who was wanted for arrest and hiding in a crawl space under the house. A crawl space, you think, is about 3.5 feet tall, so you can't stand up. It's dark, we don't know where this guy is, and there are boxes everywhere. It's the perfect call for a dog because we can use his nose and agility to navigate that environment. We were able to find him and place him under arrest without any injuries to himself, the dog, or any officers. So that's definitely a win when we can get our job done with everyone safe at the end of the day.
What does a day off look like for the two of you?
"He loves to play catch. That's his game, whether it's with a ball or a Kong on a rope. He has a small toy that's kind of like a tire that he loves to chew and carry around. He comes home with me and loves to play. He's got plenty of room to run, and he's a dog at home, so he does really well."
Is there a habit or quirk of Echo's that never fails to make you smile?
"Maybe not a habit, but a characteristic of Echo. If you've seen pictures of him, he's a long-haired German shepherd, which makes him very unique in the canine world. There aren't a lot of long-haired shepherds. But when we go running through the woods, he's kind of like Velcro. Everything sticks to him, all the burrs, all the sticks. So sometimes we get back and have a good 20-30 minutes of picking and cutting, trying to get his fur free of everything he collected while we were out and about."
If Echo could talk, what do you think he'd say about being your partner?
"That's an interesting question. We think of dogs as being loyal and of service, and I think that is kind of Echo. He is loyal to a fault. He will lay his life down for any one of us. So it's kind of humbling to have a partner that will do that for you. Super cool."
How did you first hear about Vested Interest in K9s?
"My K9 Captain was the one who found it. He showed me the information and said, "Hey, this is something I think we should do." I took a look at it and agreed with him. So we ended up applying and got a vest through Vested Interest in K9s. It's definitely a valuable asset to have for keeping Echo safe in those dangerous situations."
Are there certain situations when you put the protective vest on Echo?
"If there's a threat of a fi***rm or a bladed object, for sure, that's one of the things we can use to try to keep him safe. We don't want to send him into a situation where he's not prepared. We want to keep him safe just as much as we do any of our other officers."
What would you like to say to the donors and supporters who make this protection possible through Vested Interest in K9s?
"First of all, thank you. It's an awesome program, being able to have these vests to protect these K9s that keep all of our communities safe. It's a great program, and having it in our toolbox is super beneficial."
VIK9s NOTE: In addition to donating protective vests, Vested Interest in K9s also provides NARCAN kits and first-aid kits to K9 teams receiving vests, helping ensure these working K9s are better protected in a wide range of emergencies.
