Viking was back on the station beat Monday, but now as a retired member of the Warwick Police Department.

“He knew just where to go…he never skipped a beat,” said Officer Aaron Steere, pointing to a rug in his office where Viking, the German Shepard that has had a seven-year career fighting crime and being the department’s canine ambassador, contentedly lay chewing a rubber toy.

Minutes later, Viking and Steere headed for the police community room where he renewed his acquaintance – sniffs and a wag of the tail was the customary greeting - with staff members and got to look on as Mayor Joseph Solomon and Col. Rick Rathbun praised his service to the community.

Viking left the department last May for surgery on his right rear leg for an abnormal cyst. But that wasn’t the end of his ordeal.

Lab tests showed the cyst to be cancerous. He was neutered and his lower canine was removed. An infection set in and there were additional treatments, plus additional levels of care that Steere and his wife Bethany administered when he returned home.

“At one point they [Tufts University] finally sent him home and said it might be like that forever. So we took him home, and after a couple days he had cloudy eyes, that cleared up and we just started to see real good improvement in him since being home,” Steere said.

Viking’s reunion with department friends was joyful and all the more celebratory when he was presented a doggie cake in the shape of a bone. He went right to work licking off the frosting.

Back at the Steere home, however, it’s been a challenge and a matter of logistics. With Viking out of service, Steere is now the handler for Gary, also a German Shepard from the same Connecticut kennel. The issue is the two dogs don’t get along, so the Steeres have had to develop a routine so the two don’t cross paths.

Steere said he “expects big things” out of Gary that is still getting acclimated to the job. He has big paw prints in which to follow.

Viking was always the darling of police canine demonstrations not to mention school visits. He’s credited with ferreting out $1.5 million in cash and 200 pounds of narcotics during his tenure.