K9 Lola – New Hampshire State Police

New Hampshire State Troopers Mourn Sudden Loss of K-9 “Lola

Handler – Trooper Andrew Sheffer

New Hampshire State Police are mourning the passing of one of their four-footed partners. “It is with a heavy heart that the New Hampshire State Police Canine Unit announces the passing of K-9 Lola,” reads a Twitter post made by the agency on Wednesday. Lt. James Fogarty of Troop E barracks in Tamworth, said Lola had been a valued law enforcement team member since March 2014. “It was an unexpected loss of natural causes,” Fogarty said. The six-year-old Dutch shepherd and her handler Trooper Andrew Sheffer were based at Troop E and were regularly deployed in Carroll and Belknap Counties the barrack’s primary coverage area. They were called upon frequently and went where ever they were needed throughout the state,” said Fogarty. Lola lived with Sheffer and spent more time with him than his own family, the troop commander said. When initially paired, Sheffer and K-9 Lola spent countless hours over 24 weeks training before earning certification as both a Patrol and Drug Detection Team. Patrol teams search for wanted and lost persons. They are also vital in the apprehension of burglary and robbery suspects. Lola also used her nose to sniff out drugs in stopped vehicles, assisted corrections with searches at their facilities and also assisted upon request with searches at schools.

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.