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Died – 12/4/19
Handler – Sgt. Bryan Zabrecky
Lake County K-9 Zahr remembered for his smarts, love of pets
During one of Sgt. Bryan Zabrecky’s darkest days, fellow officers from all over Lake County rushed to be at his side. When Zabrecky, a K-9 handler with the Lake County Sheriff’s Department, picked up the remains of his partner, Zahr, from Hobart Animal Clinic Friday, he arrived expecting it to be a private moment. Then the cavalcade of officers and their K-9 partners from everywhere — the Griffith, Schererville and Hobart departments came to mind, but it was all such a blur — showed up seemingly out of nowhere to pay their respects to the big, fluffy lug that had Zabrecky’s back for more than seven years. The gesture meant a ton to Zabrecky, who’s now almost a week into being without his buddy and protector. Whereas the shock may have dissipated a bit, the sadness has only just started. “The car is really quiet now,” he said Monday. No one — least not Zabrecky — picked up on the fact that Zahr was as sick as he was or that might’ve been sick at all, he said. That Dec. 3 morning, the two attended a K-9 training, and Zahr was as gangbusters as he always was, completing the exercises like he’d done them a time or two. Zabrecky did notice Zahr seemed more mellow as he trotted to the car to go home instead of his usual bolt, but he didn’t think twice about it because he was acting normally otherwise, he said. By time the two arrived for their night shift on patrol, Zahr was so out of breath that getting up the stairs was nearly impossible, Zabrecky said. They made it up, but then Zabrecky carried him the rest of the way. Zahr died Wednesday evening of what the veterinarians believe was pericarditis, a sometimes-fatal condition where blood gets into the sac surrounding a dog’s heart, Zabrecky said. Because pericarditis isn’t uncommon in large dog breeds, Zabrecky opted not to have an autopsy conducted on his partner. Zabrecky, who’s been a K-9 handler for 10 years, teamed up with Zahr Nov. 9, 2012. Zahr was a dual-trained K-9, meaning he tracked suspects but also worked with sniffing out incendiary devices, of which he found several, including a pipe bomb found just north of 45th Avenue in Griffith along the railroad tracks in 2015, Zabrecky said. Apart from being good at his job, however, was the fact that Zahr was breaktakingly smart and always knew exactly when to stay back and when to get into the fray with his partner, Zabrecky said. “I would always leave his kennel and the window open when I approached a person. If they weren’t complying or he saw me getting physical, he would jump out, and he fought like a champ,” Zabrecky said. “But only if he saw me fighting with someone; if it was just arguing or it was loud, he knew to stay back.” And Zahr was definitely a flirt, never missing the opportunity to soak up attention during demonstrations where kids were involved. “He was all about the pets,” Zabrecky said. “He didn’t mind kids pulling on his ears or anything at all. In fact, I often said that if someone ever stole my car and he was in it, he’d be like, ‘All right! I have a new dad!’” Zahr’s bravery and all-around chill nature didn’t go unnoticed by the higher-ups, including Lake County Sheriff Oscar Martinez. “Zahr truly gave his all until his very last day with us,” Martinez said, “I’m extremely proud of his dedication and service to the citizens of Lake County.” As heartbroken as Zabrecky and his family are — his five-year-old daughter took Zahr’s death the best, which was still not very well, Zabrecky said — he’s not giving up being a K-9 handler, he said. He’ll head to Canada, where one of two service dog training facilities from where officers get their dogs is located, as soon as his passport comes in to team up with another partner. He’ll try to find one with as many of Zahr’s good points as possible, but Zabrecky knows that’s going to be tough. “It was a good time serving with him,” Zabrecky said. Zahr is the second Lake County K-9 to die in almost 3 months. Sasja died on Sept. 11 after a quick illness, according to the Lake County Sheriff’s Department.
