K9 Patrick – Washington State Police

Died – 4/14/16
Handler – Trooper Mike Allan

Washington State Patrol dog dies after sudden illness

The Washington State Patrol says that once of its police dogs has died after undergoing emergency surgery. According to a press release issued Wednesday, K9 Patrick, who was assigned to the Division of Homeland Security, died on April 14. Patrick was a nearly 3-year-old German Shephard. He suffered from a twisting of the small and large intestines, said Sgt. Kyle Smith. While the illness presented itself during explosive detection training, he did not ingest anything while he was training, Smith said. Patrick had been with the agency for seven months through a federal partnership with the Transportation Security Administration. He was part of Homeland Security efforts assisted with the protection of the Washington State Ferry system. His handler, Trooper Mike Allan, said Patrick will be missed.

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.