K9 Morgan – Reidsville, North Carolina

Handler – Officer Myers

Reidsville Police Department loses K9 after short illness

Reidsville Police Department announced the passing of their K9 Morgan after a sudden, short illness.Morgan served the department for over four years. She was trained in narcotics detection, tracking and apprehension but also enjoyed performing demonstrations for children at local schools and being the center of attention. “Morgan was beautiful, highly intelligent and will be missed tremendously by us all,” the department wrote in a Facebook post. “Our condolences go out to her partner, Officer Myers and her family who cared for Morgan throughout her illness.” Officer Myers and her family remained by Morgan’s side until the very end. “We are grateful for their strength and commitment to give Morgan the best final days with us. Rest easy sweet girl,” they wrote.

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.