By Michele Taranto

You have probably seen her walking the Norwood streets greeting everyone she meets; playing, running, and whatever other things puppies do. Since that day the town of Norwood welcomed Mustang Sally into their police department, she has melted the hearts of all she has met. Well, Mustang Sally had a big birthday last month, she turned one!

For those new to town, Mustang Sally (named from community suggestions), was welcome into the Norwood Police Department (NPD) after the tragic murder of Norwood resident Tyler Lawerence in Boston. Police de partments brought their comfort dogs to the Coakley Middle School to help comfort the students. Norwood officer, and now Sally handler Geoffrey Baguma, proposed the idea of bringing a dog into the NPD family to Norwood Police Chief Brooks, and the rest is history! 

“She will interact with children, and in some cases adults and senior citizens,” Chief Brooks said at her arrival. “She has already been to the senior center where she was also a big hit. I believe, as the term implies, she will be a comfort to people who may be in distress, particularly children in a school setting. She is also a natural draw.”

A draw is an understatement! Wherever Mustang Sally goes, a crowd surrounds her; and she takes it all in stride. From her first days in Norwood, it was as if she knew it was her job to bring smiles to so many faces.

“Sally is a very BIG hit throughout the community,” Officer Baguma said. “I think that part of it is that she visits every corner of the community and is always very happy to greet everyone in her great hometown.”

While Mustang Sally has been seen at virtually every town event and ‘walking her beat,’ she has also spent approximately the past nine months learning. It’s not all fun and games all the time!

“Sally has been going through a lot of training this past year to equip her with everything that she needs to be a community resource dog and ‘your best friend in training,’” Officer Baguma said. “Sally has already passed her S.T.A.R Puppy Test as well as her Canine Good Citizen Test.”

In addition to being a welcoming and comforting friend, Sally has been developing some great tracking skills.

“Sally has also been going through additional training called Friendly Finds,” Officer Baguma explained. “This training helps Sally to sharpen her skill of scent tracking. In this training, a scent is first introduced to Sally. Sally is then challenged to locate the person or object through the scent trail left along the way. Sally has been able to locate a person a half a mile away through her tracking training so far. Sally has been able to continuously meet her goals.”

That’s our girl! For those interested in seeing Sally in tracking action visit her Facebook page, Mustang Sally. She also has her own Instagram page at MustangSallyNPD.

Residents may be wondering how she is as a teammate. After all, she has captured a lot of attention and her trading cards continually sell out! 

“She has been great with her fellow officers as well,” Officer Baguma said. “They have all been amazing with her. Sally is absolutely going to miss Chief Brooks a lot. They will be forever connected together.”

Sally has a lot on her shoulders to bear, both in her responsibilities and spreading her cheer, but she seems to be up for the challenge! 

“The sky’s the limit for Sally,” Officer Baguma said. “Finishing up the remainder of her training is the first thing on her list. After she is done with that, she will be visiting a lot more people around town. Sally will go down as one of the best community resources when it’s all said and done. I’m sure of it. She has a great spirit, loves what she does, and really loves people.”

Last, but certainly not least. She does enjoy her namesake ice cream flavor at Daddy’s Dairy, but in case anyone is wondering, Mustang Sally’s favorite snacks are chicken, hamburger, a little hotdog, and cheese.