K9 Austin – Airway Heights, Washington

Died 10/19/21

Handler – Officer Ziegler 

Airway Heights Police K-9 dies

The Airway Heights Police Department is saying a heartfelt goodbye to a very good boy. The police department says K-9 Austin died last week. He passed surrounded by his fellow officers and his family. K-9 Austin started at the Airway Heights Police Department in Nov. 2008 when he was only a year old. He worked the next 10 years of his life sniffing out narcotics in more than 350 cases for a long list of law enforcement agencies in the area. He hung up the harness and retired in 2018. He spent his retired days at home with his best friend and handler Officer Zeigler and his family. “K-9 Austin will be remembered as a loyal and faithful officer who was always eager to go to work and be there to locate drugs, or to act as a comfort dog for victims in need, as well as to his fellow officers when they were having a hard day,” the police department posted to its Facebook page Tuesday. The police department ended its post by saying K-9 Austin is greatly missed but is over the rainbow bridge chasing tennis balls and crunching empty water bottles.

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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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