K9 Alto – Horry County, South Carolina

Died – 5/3/18

HCPD remembers K9 Officer ‘Alto’

The Horry County Police Department, including K9 handlers, paused to honor the service of K9 officer Alto on Thursday. Alto was kind of special because he was a very big dog. He was intimidating to look at. But to be honest with you, he wasn’t nothing but a big baby, a big bear,” said Sgt. Craig Hutchinson, a K9 handler with the Horry County Police Department. The department held a small memorial service, Thursday, after the retired K9 passed away from cancer last week. Sgt. Craig Hutchinson says being a handler is rewarding for both the officer and the dog. “When I come to work, it’s with me. It’s a partner. It’s one of the best partners I’ve ever had. They’re always happy to work. They’re always there. If I’m having a bad day, they’re there for me. If they’re having a bad day, I’m there for them. It’s a fun job,” said Sgt. Hutchinson. K9 Alto retired from HCPD last year after eight years of service. He was 11 years old. Horry County PD currently has four Bloodhound tracking dogs, and five German Shepherds, three trained to detect narcotics, and two trained to detect explosives.

Tags

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.
| Old Memorials | Site Map
Copyright © 1973 - 2024 Louise Krause Memorials to Fallen K-9's Hosted By PC-GEEK Site Maintained BY Jim Cortina