K9 Odin – Tāmaki Makaurau, New Zealand

Handler – Constable Casey

Hero NZ police dog notorious for hunting ‘baddest of criminals’ put down after cancer battle

A hero police dog who was known for hunting and catching the “baddest of criminals” has been put down after a short battle with cancer.Oden, 5, had been part of Tāmaki Makaurau police dog section for a number of years, gaining a reputation for being one of the best patrol dogs in the country. The energetic dog was diagnosed with lymphoma cancer this year and after a very short fight had to be put down last month. The pup was a beloved team-mate of Constable Casey, who fostered him when he was just 10 weeks old.Casey and Oden were inseparable from that moment on and soon graduated as a member of the dog team in December 2019.After being Casey’s first-ever police dog and the pair went through intense training together, Oden went on to qualify as both an Armed Offender Squad and Special Tactics Group dog, becoming one of the most qualified and experienced dogs in the country.“We were deployed throughout the North Island but primarily Auckland and Northland, and he was responsible for catching a lot of offenders,” says Constable Casey. Known for being one of the best trackers, he once located three wanted offenders after tracking them for five hours through Mangatāwhiri bush.But despite his fierce ability to hunt down offenders, he was a favourite with children where his social skills would flourish during school and community events. “He could go from tracking and apprehending the baddest of criminals to rolling around on the grass with the kids from next door. He absolutely loved going for big walks in the forest and swims in the ocean.” His last few weeks were spent at home with Constable Casey and his family where he was given all the treats and affection a dog could ever dream of. “He was an amazing police dog and a much loved member of the family.”

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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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