Chelan County Jail’s K-9 Team Moving On

The K-9 Team at Chelan County Regional Jail is moving on--Corrections Deputy Jacob Lewis is becoming a Deputy with the Douglas County Sheriff's Department.  His partner K-9 Gambit, a five year old Border Collie, is retiring to a new life as a loving pet in the Lewis household.

Chelan County announced the moves on Friday in a news release.

Lewis has been recognized for his leadership in developing the drug interdiction program to keep drugs out of the Chelan County Regional Jail, where the smuggling of contraband and illicit drugs had become a serious problem.

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Deputy Lewis was paired with his original K-9 partner Kait until her death from a  terminal liver condition in 2023.  K-9 Kait became a celebrity of sorts in the Wenatchee Valley as a result of Lewis' social media work promoting Kait and the narcotics detecting program he helped develop in the jail.  After her passing, K-9 Gambit stepped into Kait's role at the jail.

The program has been recognized nationally and was one of the first in the country to be implemented in a municipal jail facility

Corrections Deputy Jacob Lewis will become Douglas Co. Sheriff's Deputy Lewis this summer but Gambit will be retired because he cannot team up effectively with another K-9 handler because the bond is so deep between the pair of crimefighters.

Chelan County has already hired a new handler to replace Lewis.  Skyler Silsby will be paired with a replacement K-9 partner to take Gambit's place.

Lewis says he is leaving a job he loves at the Chelan County Regional Jail for a better opportunity as a patrol deputy in Douglas County.

Read More:  K-9 Program Changes