Innisfail, Alberta, Feb. 02, 2006 –Will it be Sam, Spike or Sophie? Time will tell as the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) launches its annual “Name the Puppy” contest.

The RCMP invites all young people from across Canada to name 10 German shepherd puppies born at the Police Dog Service Training Centre (PDSTC) in Innisfail, Alberta. Deadline for entries is March 2, 2006. Winning names will be chosen by PDSTC staff. In case of multiple submissions of the same name, a draw will determine the winning entry. Contest winners and prizes will be announced on April 5, 2006.

In its sixth year, this popular contest generates thousands of entries every year from boys and girls across the country. The organization is again looking forward to a great response.

Young people are encouraged to be original and imaginative in finding names that will serve these puppies well in their career with Canada’s national police force. When thinking of names, it is important to keep in mind that these are working police dogs, not pets.

The rules of the contest are simple:

• Contestants can suggest only one name (one entry per person). The name may be for a male or a female pup.
• The name must start with the letter “S”.
• The name cannot have more than nine letters.
• The name must have one or two syllables.
• Contestants must be 16 years old and under.

To enter, contestants must print their name, age, address, telephone number, and the suggested name for a puppy on a piece of paper or a postcard and mail it to:

Attn: “Name the Puppy Contest”
The Officer in Charge
Police Dog Service Training Centre
Box 6120, Innisfail, AB
T4G 1S8

The RCMP will accept more than one entrant per household provided each participant submits one name per sheet of paper. For school entries, individual student entries can be combined in one large envelope marked “School Entry”. Each submission must be on an individual sheet of paper. Note that two school classrooms will be selected to receive a special classroom presentation by a dog handler in their region based on their classroom creativity.

PDSTC is the national training centre in Canada for all RCMP police dog teams. Currently, there are 133 RCMP police dog service teams from coast to coast to coast. In the last 71 years, RCMP dog teams have saved hundreds of Canadians’ lives.

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For more information, please contact:

Insp. Lawrence Aimoe

Officer in Charge, RCMP Police Dog Service Training Centre
Tel.: 403-227-3346