K9 Zoa – Calhoun County, Iowa

Died  – 9/17/21 

Calhoun County Sheriff’s Office’s K-9 Dies Unexpectedly Friday Due To Medical Issues

The Calhoun County Sheriff’s Office reports their newest K-9 officer, Zoa, died Friday due to an unexpected medical emergency. Authorities announced the loss of their K-9 in a post to social media Tuesday morning. Officials say she had suffered a ruptured pancreas and the complications from the condition were terminal. Sheriff, Patrick Riley, says it is not clear what caused the internal injuries, but they do not appear to be connected to a single incident. The Sheriff’s Office announced in January they were planning to add a K-9 unit to their agency and quickly raised the more than $20,000 necessary to become operational. K-9 Zoa had been working with the Calhoun County Sheriff’s Office for a few months and was certified on narcotics detection and tracking in June. During K-9 Zoa’s short time with the Calhoun County Sheriff’s Office, she and her handler, Deputy Kelly Moritz, had already been involved in numerous drug-related arrests. Riley says they are currently reviewing their options, but plans at this time are to bring a new K-9 into the agency is soon as possible.

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Submitted By Jim Cortina

James A. Cortina has been involved with police dogs since 1972 and currently on the Board of Directors for the Connecticut Police Work Dog Association Inc. Jim has been appointed as Treasurer since its inception in 1991. Jim is one of the charter members of the C.P.W.D.A. organization. Since 1975 he has been a certified professional dog trainer and received his Master Trainer Certification in 1985. During his career he has provided armed K-9 strike crowd control for security agencies in Connecticut and out of state security companies. In conjunction with other members of the Connecticut Police Work Dog Association Inc. Board of Directors, he helped to draft Connecticut Statute 53-247(e) "Intentional Injury or Killing of Police K-9" which was passed by the Senate in 1993 and also assisted in implementing the prestigious Daniel Wasson Memorial K-9 Award in 1992. In 1993 he helped coordinate the North American Police Work Dog Association Nationals in New London, Connecticut. He was appointed Training Director for the New London County Work Dog Association from 1985-1987. He performed decoy work for Connecticut Police Work Dog Association Inc. in police K-9 demonstrations, trained several local police department canines, and coordinated training workshops for out-of-state police departments. He participated in the United States Police K-9 Association Trials in Croton on Hudson, New York in 1985 as a decoy. He is an avid photographer and received photography awards in 1989, 1990, and 1991 and currently takes photographs for the Connecticut Police Work Dog Association Inc.
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