BALTIMORE — In light of Women's History Month, WMAR-2 News is taking a look at women succeeding in male dominated professions.
For nearly seven years, Detective Michelle Burke has worn a Baltimore Police uniform. She's a detective in the mobile unit.
She's the first person at BPD to ever have two dogs.
"Do what you gotta do to get to where you gotta go cause the only person that's gonna make you happy and successful is yourself," said Burke.
One dog you'll see her with is Scout, a therapy dog in the health and wellness department.
The bundle of joy is helps ease the stress that comes with being in law enforcement.
"He shows comfort to people who need it. Not just people in the department or the agency. We go to schools, hospitals, just random people out in the street. If you're having a rough day, Scout is gonna come over show you some love and remind you that it's okay to have an off day and you're gonna get through it," said Burke.
Before Scout came in the picture, managing the stress of this high-intensity job was rough for Burke.
"Officers think we can deal with it on our own and we don't say anything and everything is behind closed doors. So, I would keep a lot of the stuff to myself and think I'll be fine, it happens, I signed up for it and I got to get through it. It comes with the job," said Burke.
Having Scout helps Burke manage her own emotions.
"Scout reminds me that I am human too even though I work a crazy job, I still have emotions and feelings," she said.
When Burke's not with Scout, you'll find her with Boomer the K9, a narcotics dog in the department.
Together, the two are a citywide unit which is also rare in her profession.
"Wherever a situation happens, we'll get deployed in that area and if we need to. Help out additional units. I like to call us a support unit. We'll help units get the job done in whatever needs to be done," she said.
Detective Burke says Boomer's nose is the golden prize, especially helpful in making narcotics arrests.
"He's an amazing partner and I'm really grateful. We make great memories, we bring a lot of smiles to people too and it feels good driving around with someone everyday knowing I'm not alone and he has my back," said Burke.
The two have been partners for six months.
Despite being tasked with two dogs, Burke welcomes that responsibility because nothing can stop her from doing the job she loves most.
BPD will release a video about Burke on their YouTube page on Friday.
