K9 Bear – Gloucester, England

Died – 6/19/19
Handler – Sergeant Geoff Blindell

Police Force Pays Emotional Tribute To Retired Police Dog Named Bear

Today, the Gloucester Police Force are mourning the loss of Bear, the retired police dog who passed away on Wednesday with his handler by his side. The German Shepherd retired in January 2018 along with his owner Sergeant Geoff Blindell, who called Bear his “partner, hero and best friend” in an emotional tweet announcing his passing. The Gloucestershire Police Dogs Section also paid tribute to Bear on Twitter, saying: “We are very sad to announce that Retired PD Bear passed peacefully over rainbow bridge last night. “His retired handler Geoff was by his side to kiss him goodbye. He enjoyed his retirement to the full. R.I.P. Bear thank you for your service #YouWillBeRememberedForever.” Bear was a rescue dog from Barnstaple, who was recruited to be part of the Tri-Force Specialist Operations Dog Unit with his handler Geoff in 2011 after an intensive 13-week course. The pair retired early last year where they enjoyed their days living at Geoff’s home in Cheltenham. Announcing the sad new yesterday, Geoff wrote: “It is with deep regret and sadness to inform you that my partner, hero and best friend passed away this evening. We had great times together and he will always have a special place in my heart xx RIP BEAR now go and run with your mates over the Rainbow bridge.” During his seven-year tenure, Bear assisted Geoff with tracking and catching offenders and loyally defending his owner. “Me and Bear have been together for the past seven years,” Geoff told Glouchester Live in an interview on their retirement.”Hes a lovely dog and he has been a real stalwart for me. We have been to some cracking jobs together. He’s saved lives, he’s caught offenders, I couldn’t ask anything more from him. I’m just so pleased we are together we are very lucky.”

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