K9 Rex – Muskegon County, Michigan

Handler – Deputy Jamie Ottinger

Michigan Sheriff’s K-9 Remembered as Loyal, Brave Public Servant

Law enforcement officials are mourning the loss of one of their own following the death of Muskegon County Sheriff K-9 Deputy Rex. Rex, a German shepherd and “trusted partner,” died over the weekend after being diagnosed with blood cancer, the office of Sheriff Michael Poulin announced Monday. Rex served with the Muskegon County Sheriff’s Office since 2012. He was a native of the Netherlands, and came to the sheriff’s office via White Collar Canine. He received pre-service training at the Southfield Police Department. Rex and his handler, Deputy Jamie Ottinger, served the community by finding lost children, tracking wanted suspects and detecting narcotics. “K-9 Rex has touched many lives while serving Muskegon County,” the sheriff’s office said. A community celebration of Rex and his service will be 4-7 p.m. Thursday, June 28, at Fricano’s Event Center, 1050 W. Western Avenue in Muskegon. The public is invited to the open house as are other law enforcement K-9 units.

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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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