K9 Ozzy – Northumbria, England

DIED 7/13/20
Handler – PC Dale James

This is the heart-breaking moment a retired police dog says goodbye to his K9 colleague – after he passed away at home this week. On Monday (July 13) PC Dale James and his retired police dog Bailey said a tearful goodbye to their best friend, Ozzy. The 14-year-old Dutch Herder had served Northumbria Police for eight years before he hung up his lead and retired in 2014. Labrador Bailey continued to work as a specialist search dog for two years before he retired and Dale moved out of the Dog Section. The 10-year-old joined Ozzy at Dale’s family home in Northumberland where the best friends enjoyed a well-earned retirement. But on Monday, Ozzy sadly passed away in his owner’s arms and was taken home to be buried under an apple tree at the bottom of the garden. Dale has today (Sunday) released a picture showing the moment Bailey lay next to his brother to say one last goodbye before he was laid to rest. “When we got Ozzy as a puppy we had another dog called Stella and she quickly became a bit of a mother figure for him,” said Dale. “When she died we buried her under the apple tree at the bottom of the garden and Ozzy came and lay next to her to say his last goodbye which was amazing to see. “Then when Ozzy died this week I brought him home and lay him on the garden under a blanket so I could bury him next to Stella. “I began to dig down there and then Bailey came and lay next to him, exactly like Ozzy had done with Stella. “It was really sad and it has been heart-breaking for the family but it really is amazing how dogs just know these things.” He added: “I got Ozzy when he was just a baby and he was with me every day for the next 14 years, he basically never left my side. “I trained him, got him licensed as a police dog and then he saved my backside on more than one occasion when he was working with me and Bailey. “Without him getting out there and supporting me there would have been a number of times where things could have ended a lot differently. “It’s very sad and we will miss him a lot but he was a great friend to me. He had a fantastic career and a great end to his life so I couldn’t ask for anything more.” Dale immediately struck up a bond with the Dutch Herder after taking him on as a seven-week-old puppy in 2006. After a year Ozzy had become a fully licensed K9 and was involved in a string of good jobs through his eight year career in the Force. That included tracking a burglar for more than half an hour in North Tyneside, bringing to end an armed siege in Wallsend and locating a car thief in dense woodland in Ashington. In 2014 Ozzy retired and became a family pet alongside Dale, his wife Karin and their son Nathan. Bailey then joined best mate Ozzy when Dale moved out of the Dog Section in 2016.

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.