I’m guessing that the writer got punked.
Same with the talking to the dogs in German. Yes, it might be a good idea to teach them commands in a different language so a potential threat can’t try to countermand them, but I’m still thinking she did it to mess with the reporter.
Actually, most police depts train their K9s in German. Nothing better on the stand during the civil trial than having the plaintiff swear under oath he heard the cop yell, “Attack, attack!” Then they find out the dog only responds to “angrief” or “zuruckhalt”...