K9 Abby – Jamestown, Rhode Island

Died – 7/25/17
Handler – LuAnn Botelho

K9 Abby Answers Her Final Call

A favorite member of the Jamestown Police Department, K9 Abby also had a national reputation as a search and rescue dog. She was nominated several times for the American Hero Dog Awards. But she may have been happiest close to home. To the delight of school children at Jamestown’s Melrose and Lawn Avenue schools, Abby was a frequent participant in the Island Treasures day, when the children meet island residents involved in creative and professional careers. Abby showed off her search and rescue skills; and although her pet siblings were following in her footsteps, Abby was the pack leader. She started her career with the police department as a volunteer available for search and rescue assignments. But when a friend’s dog went missing, Abby’s owner LuAnn Botelho realized K9 Abby could find lost pets, too. Botelho did not charge for her services. Abby found lost cats hiding inside basement walls and under garden sheds. After people insisted there was nothing under the shed, Abby would keep pointing until someone finally found the kitty. The Jamestown police posted the sad news Tuesday. K9 Abby died Tuesday morning after a battle with cancer. She will never be forgotten, the officers said.

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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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