Rutherford County Fire Rescue is adding a new investigator. What's different about this new staff member is that he's got four legs and a wet nose.

K9 Mikey and his handler, John Wauchek, with Rutherford County Fire Rescue graduated from the three-week State Farm® Arson Dog Training Program in New Hampshire. K9 Mikey is a one year old male black Labrador retriever. Fire Investigator Wauchek and his new canine partner will investigate fires throughout Rutherford County and the surrounding area

The new addition was officially welcomed on Tuesday, May 16, at the Rutherford County Fire Rescue headquarters located at 2785 Barfield Road in Murfreesboro.

State Farm has been a sponsor of the Arson Dog Program since 1993 with more than 380 teams being trained for law enforcement agencies in 45 states, three Canadian provinces and the District of Columbia. Each year, new K-9 teams are trained and placed in departments across the country. The program provides an invaluable tool and resource for arson investigators and their departments.

You can read more about the program at www.arsondog.org.