Memorials to Fallen K-9s
 2009-D
The F.A.S.T. Co. donates sets of memorial cards to all partners 
 I need your help to inform me of such losses.

Dept. addresses available for those who want to send condolences to officers. See below

The Sheboygan Police Department has Inyrst three canines on the Department were d

uIn Loving Memory of
K9 DUC
May 15, 2009

Handler?
Sheboygan Police Dept.
Wisconsin

The ever changing atmosphere and mode of operation of criminal elements within the City of Sheboygan demonstrated the need for a single purpose narcotics canine team.  The Department has seen an increase in narcotic arrests and drug related crimes over the past several years.  The K-9 Unit is a proactive component that joins specific efforts to fight drugs in the community.  The other efforts include the continued collaboration of the Sheboygan County MEG Unit, the Sheboygan Police Street Crimes Unit,
 and the Community Policing Unit.

In Loving Memory of
K9 DOC
December 2009
 
 Handler: Lt. Todd Hendrix 
Woodruff Police Department
 751 East Georgia Road
Woodruff, South Carolina 29388
Phone: (864)476-8131
Fax: (864)476-6457

WEBSITE - http://www.cityofwoodruff.com/police.php

In Loving Memory of
    K9 DEVO
    2009 

Umatilla Tribal Police
73303 July Grounds Lane,
Pendleton, OR 97801
phone: 541-278-0550
FAX: 541-278-0554

Need help with K9 DEVO... please email me info and photo. lulu

In Loving Memory of
K9 DASHA
July 1, 2009

Handler: Deputy Russell
Blount County Sheriff's Office
  Sheriff James L Berrong
940 E Lamar Alexander Parkway
Maryville, Tennessee 37804 (865)273-5000

K-9 Dasha, crack Blount County Sheriff’s Office bloodhound, dies of cancer
Blount County Sheriff’s K-9 Dasha was a favorite of children and adults at any event she attended.
This photo was taken in October at a car show at William Blount High School. Dasha died on Monday after a battle with cancer.
She saved many lives. She sniffed out scores of bad guys. But this week her best friend and partner, Deputy Allen Russell, had to say goodbye.  Dasha, a K-9 for the Blount County Sheriff’s Office, died Monday after many months of fighting cancer.
The beloved bloodhound will be sorely missed by her family, law enforcement and the community.
In Dasha’s first appearance in The Daily Times in 2002, the late reporter Anna C. Irwin quoted Russell as saying Dasha was “a nose with a dog attached.” Since then, Dasha’s nose has proven to be one of the best resources that Blount and surrounding
 counties have ever seen.  

Dasha has sniffed out 68 people in her seven-year career. She has assisted other agencies 85 times in Alcoa, Townsend, Loudon County, Sweetwater, Monroe County and Sevier County — just to name a few. She has received letters of appreciation from Overton County, Campbell County, Loudon County, the Tennessee House of Representatives and the Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation.
Russell and Dasha were “Employee of the Month” at the sheriff’s office in 2003, 2004 and 2007. In 2007, the pair won the BCSO Life Saving Award and the Red Cross Law Enforcement Hero of the Year Award.
The lifesaving and hero awards recognized Russell and Dasha for finding an elderly woman who is legally blind after she wandered from her home in August 2006. Dasha found the woman tangled and hanging in barbed wire in the woods.  Russell recalled one of his favorite tracks with Dasha was after an armed robbery of a gas station. He said the suspects had crashed their vehicle and Russell tried to stand by and wait for backup, but Dasha wasn’t having it. “She just drug me and took me to the guys who were hiding in a car,” Russell said.
Dasha assisted in apprehending murderers, found people who had been missing for days and was also a great tool in finding evidence while sniffing out a trail.“She’s done a lot of good things,” Russell said. “We’ve put some bad guys in jail and we’ve brought
a lot of people home.”
Bought as pet
She was born on Christmas Day 2001, and Russell bought Dasha to be a pet and mate for a male bloodhound. After only having her a few weeks, Russell realized Dasha had an amazing talent at tracking. He began taking her to training with the Blount County K-9 Association, and at 7 weeks old, she performed her first track.  The K-9 association was just “experimenting” with Dasha’s skills at that time, but her first track quickly made her a part of the team when she found a missing 14-year-old girl in Overton County. Russell said it was decided that Dasha could start accompanying him to work as a sheriff’s K-9.  “Once they said that — she never left the car,” Russell said.
He leased Dasha to the Blount County Sheriff’s Office for a penny a year, and Dasha went to work with Russell every shift, until she got sick. In September, Russell said Dasha was diagnosed with lymphoma cancer. Her first round of chemotherapy was successful for a while, but the cancer returned in April. Dasha tried another dose of a different type of chemotherapy, but Russell said this dose did not help. She had her good days, but took a turn for the worse in the recent weeks.  “We just couldn’t let her suffer,” Russell said.
 Gentle, loving spirit
 Russell said Dasha will be remembered for her many great accomplishments in law enforcement, but will mostly be remembered for her gentle and loving spirit. “She just had such a loving personality,” he said.
Not only did Dasha steal the hearts of adults and children she met at demonstrations, but she even won over some of the criminals she apprehended. Russell said he could remember apprehending one criminal who called Dasha a “good girl” as she jumped on him, proud of her catch.Although Dasha is no longer with the Russell family and the family misses her dearly, Russell said he and his wife, Diane, will be kept busy with their new bloodhound pup — Tess. The puppy will be trained as a police K-9 and will serve as the next bloodhound for the sheriff’s office. Just like Dasha, Russell thinks Tess will also be “a blessing.”
 submitted by Jim Cortina, Dir. CPWDA

In Loving Memory of
K9 DIEGO
date: ? @ this time
Handler: Not disclosed @ this time
Gainesville Police Department
118 Jesse Jewell Parkway
P. O. Box 2496
Gainesville, GA 30503
Phone: 770-534-5252 - Fax: 770-535-5620
 WEBSITE - http://www.gainesville.org/citydepartments.policedepartment.asp 

Ex-Gainesville officer is suspected of abusing police dog
A former Gainesville police officer is under investigation for possibly abusing a police dog. The officer abruptly resigned three weeks ago and police soon after discovered problems with the dog that had been assigned to him, Gainesville Police Chief Frank Hooper said.
Hooper declined to name the officer, a 10-year veteran who was the department’s senior dog handler, citing an on-going criminal investigation by the Georgia Bureau of Investigation. The GBI is investigating after Hooper went to District Attorney Lee Darragh with possible evidence of misconduct.
The dog, a Belgian Malinois named Diego that the department had for nine months, was euthanized at the recommendation of veterinary and police dog experts because of his vicious nature, Hooper said. It was never used in police service. Hooper said soon after the senior dog handler resigned, another canine handler took the dog home and discovered it was uncontrollably vicious. The dog bit the handler, requiring stitches to his hand, Hooper said. Police reviewed video of the dog in training and discovered that the sessions seemed "a little bizarre," Hooper said.
"Some of the training methods used on this canine to me seemed a little unorthodox," he said. The chief said the video, which was made as standard procedure in all training sessions, showed what appeared to be an electric shock collar around the dog’s midsection.  Hooper said it appeared shocks were delivered to the dog’s genitals in an attempt to keep it from biting. An independent police dog handler evaluated the dog and determined it could not be rehabilitated, Hooper said. The handler believed the dog suffered from the effects of poor training methods before police acquired it and possibly afterward, Hooper said.
"We tried to find any other option, but there was no option," Hooper said.  The dog was purchased by the department from a kennel in the Midwest last fall. The officer under investigation kept it at his home before resigning. Police discovered after the resignation that the dog had earlier failed a required certification from a police dog training association. Hooper said the investigation remains with the GBI, which will report back to the district attorney with its findings. submitted by Jim Cortina, Dir. CPWDA
I emailed: Lt. Stan Kimbrell  <skimbrell@gainesville.org> 7/11/09
 UPDATE:  Officer resigns in probe of police dog abuse - By B.J.Williams Staff

A police dog has been euthanized and a Gainesville police officer has resigned amid allegations that he mistreated the animal. Gainesville Police Chief Frank Hooper told Channel 2 News Friday that the GBI was brought in to investigate when reports surfaced that the officer had used an electric shock collar on the dog's genitals as a form of punishment. "When some of these things come about, you know, we looked at, well, is there something here that could be a criminal violation," commented Hooper.   The dog, named Diego, was put down after police determined he was too vicious to be used in the line of duty.  The officer has not been named, since charges have not been brought at this point.

In Loving Memory of
K9 DASH
May 29, 2009

Handler: Deputy Tony Branch    
Putman County Sheriff's Department
 10 E Broad St
Cookeville, TN 38501-3274
(931) 526-2125
WEBSITE - http://www.cookeville-tn.org/police/

 Police lose valuable member of the force
 The Cookeville Police Department recently lost a valuable member of the force to lymphoma who worked up to the day before he passed away. "Dash," a 3-year-old Belgian Malinois, was a narcotics dog who had been working with his partner, Deputy Tony Branch, for about a year.   "He had a little knot come up on the backside. We went to the vet and they cut it off and diagnosed him then," said Branch.
"The vet said, with these kind of cases, you'll notice a little difference in them but they won't be suffering. Then overnight it will just happen. And that's pretty much what happened.  
 I found him one day passed out in the yard in a thunderstorm. He couldn't even get in his doghouse. I had to carry him to the truck." Dash had to be put down that same day. In the short year that Branch worked with him, Dash helped find numerous traces of drugs and even helped in several significant drug busts in the community. "In the year I had him, I can think of at least two search warrants I was able to write off of him and they resulted in a pretty good drug seizure. One was a meth lab, one was cocaine," said Branch. 
Dash was Branch's third dog since he joined the police force in 2001. The first was a bloodhound who passed away. The second was a German Shepherd who was already advanced in age when Branch took him. The German Shepherd was retired after his hip went out. Dash came from Thunderhawk Canine, a Cookeville business which trains dogs for the police force, in addition to the number of other canine services they provide. According to Christie Meyer, clinical behavior consultant and certified police K9 trainer for Thunderhawk Canine, though lymphoma is not extremely unusual for Dash's breed, such a young dog developing cancer is uncommon. 
According to Meyer, Thunderhawk Canine guarantees the health of dogs that are purchased at their facility for up to a year. "Dash was maybe two or three months passed his warrantee, but we went ahead and replaced him," she said. "(Thunderhawk) has been really good to us," Branch added. Stepping up to try to follow in Dash's pawprints is 18-month-old Titan who was born and raised at Thunderhawk. Though Branch wasn't sure he wanted a new dog so soon after Dash's passing, he is quickly warming to his new partner-in-training. "I haven't really used him at work per-se yet," said Branch. "We're both still just getting to know each other."
megan.trotter@herald-citizen.com <megan.trotter@herald-citizen.com>  
 Thanks Megan for the photo of DASH.
Submitted by Jim Cortina, Dir. CPWDA

In Loving Memory of
K9 DARCO
June 1, 2009

 Handler: ?
Miami-Date County Police Department
  & Sweetwater Police Department
 500 Southwest 109 Avenue
Sweetwater, Florida 33174
Phone: (305)552-9900  Fax: (305)552-8053

 Officers mourn death of K9
SWEETWATER, FL (WSVN) -- Officers of South Florida community are mourning the death of one of their canines.
Darco, a 12-year-old Dutch Shepherd, died Friday. He was one of the first police canines in Miami-Dade County to work with the SWAT Team and has been with the Sweetwater Police Department for over nine years.
Funeral services will be held Wednesday June 3rd at Pet Heaven Cemetery.
submitted by Jim Cortina, Dir. CPWDA

In Loving Memory of
K9 DUNNA
January 3, 1999 - May 31, 2009

Handler: Deputy Steve McManamey
Branch County Sheriff Office
580 Marshall Rd.
Coldwater, MI 49036
Phone: 517.278.2325

To Protect, Serve, and Love 
by Dr. Hamilton on March 23, 2009

Introduction:
 Meet one of America's finest.
Name: K-9 Dunna
Date of Birth: 1/3/99
Country of Origin: Rinchnach, Germany 
Breed: German Shepherd
Job description: Patrol Dog (Narcotics, Tracking, Building Search, Handler Protection)

Career highlights:

  • 2002--Tracked down 2 male subjects after they broke into a marina.

  • 2002--During a routine traffic stop: Located plastic film canister wrapped with tape under a seat containing several packets of Crystal Meth, street value $500-800.

  • 2003--Located 22.3 pounds of Marijuana at a home just 3 houses from an elementary school.

Community service:
Attendance and demonstrations at many events and fund raisers for organizations such as: Humane society, Elementary schools, 4-H club, Union city rotary club, Branch county career center criminal justice program, Coldwarter Kiwanis club, Girl scouts
 Wal-mart, Sturgis Kennel club. Dunna also participates in local parades…in full uniform.
Hobbies:  Going for walks
Favorite Toy: Tennis Ball
Date retired: August 28, 2008

Current Status:
Retired, Dunna was diagnosed with cancer September of 2008 and is currently undergoing treatments for her cancer. After fighting crime for years, making the world as little bit safer, she is now fighting her own battle. Dunna’s treatment to date has been made possible with the dedication of her loving owners and generous contributions made to her ‘health fund’ by some of the organizations she has helped in the past, as well as some very kind donations by others touched by her story.  For more information on Dunna or to add your support, Dunna’s owners can be contacted at k9dunna@yahoo.com. Dunna is a truly remarkable dog. --Dr. Hamilton
---------------------
Dr. Hamilton is an oncology resident at Michigan State's Animal Cancer Care Clinic and a regular contributor to Wag Reflex
---------------------

DECISION MADE TO END DUNNA'S SUFFERING
By roland stoy - Rstoy@thedailyreporter.com

COLDWATER - For seven years, Dunna was an active member of the Branch County law enforcement community, working in tracking, pursuit and apprehension as well as in demonstrations and numerous community events as a goodwill ambassador to the public.
Last August, an emotional event took place in the office of Branch County Sheriff Warren Canon, as her partner, Deputy Steve McManamey, and wife Dawn, marked her retirement due to the finding of cancer, diagnosed by a local veterinarian after Steve had noticed some blood and sores in her mouth after training exercises.
On May 31, the decision was made to end Dunna's suffering.
"It was the hardest decision I have ever made. My heart goes out to anyone that has ever struggled with that decision," said McManamey. "As much as I wanted her to stay, I knew it was necessary so she would no longer be in discomfort or pain. She began not eating well and was having difficulty breathing that last few days."
The community stepped forward after the announcement last year, in typical Branch County fashion, to support Dunna with her treatments, but in April, McManamey said she took a turn for the worst.
In May, She was examined at the Care Center Veterinary Hospital and that was followed up at Michigan State University.
"X-rays were taken of her leg and her chest at MSU. An oncologist and an orthopedic surgeon said the cancer had also spread into her elbow in addition to growing rapidly in her chest," said McManamey. "MSU staff was also sad to hear the news. Dunna had made such an impact on them as well, like she has many people in this community. They shed tears along with us, she was given pain medication and then we left, hoping to enjoy whatever days she had left."
Dunna and McManamey were inseparable, as the German Shepherd went home with McManamey when he was off duty.
Dawn said she was like a "second child."
"It was a bright, sunny, Sunday around 3 p.m. in our back yard and she was surrounded by her family. After she took her last breath, I knew her pain and suffering were gone, but our memories of her would always live on," said Steve. "There have been many tears shed and many more to come. We already miss her so much and we always will. She and I were connected in a way most people would not understand."
He said she had been with him a long time, but felt she was taken from him "too soon."
"She was not 'just a dog,' she was the best partner and my best friend," said McManamey.

The complete story appears in the Friday, June 5 edition and is available at coldwaterdailyreporter.mi.newsmemory.com.
sadly submitted by Deputy Steve McManamey   Rstoy@thedailyreporter.com

In Loving Memory of
K9 DAN
May 23, 2009

Handler: Sgt. Jonathan Zuker
Cedartown Police Department
118 N Philpot St
Cedartown, GA 30125
(770) 748-4123 

Police K-9 dog dies from illness
Cedartown Police Sgt. Jonathan Zuker is pictured with K-9 Dan, a beloved police dog that died recently. 
The Cedartown Police Department (CPD) lost a valuable member of their team on Saturday, May 23. K-9 Dan, the police dog for CPD, and in fact the only one in Polk County, died following a somewhat rare medical reason involving the stomach. Apparently, Dan succumbed to a condition known as Gastric Dilatation, commonly known as bloat, where the stomach fills with air and essentially rotates, or twists, not allowing matter in the stomach to pass. The condition, while somewhat rare, is more common in larger breeds, specifically breeds with deep, narrow chests.
Dan’s handler, Cedartown police officer Sgt. Jonathan Zuker, said that Dan was completely fine on Friday, May 22, before noticed the dog lying on his back with his legs in the air. Zuker had heard of bloat, and knew to immediately rush Dan to a veterinarian in Shannon, north of Rome. The vet performed surgery on Dan Friday night, and even called Zuker to tell him that Dan looked okay early Saturday morning. However, the vet notified Zuker just before noon on Saturday that Dan had died.
Dan was a German Sheppard originally from Europe. He was eight years old, and had been a part of the Cedartown Police Force for over six years. Zuker described Dan as being in the prime of his life. Dan was a dual-purpose police dog capable of handler protection, tracking and locating narcotics. Zuker was not even able to speculate on the amount of drugs and cash that Dan seized during his time on the force. Assistant Chief of the Cedartown Police Department Jamie Newsome added that for the last several years Dan was the only police dog in the county.  Therefore, every agency in Polk County is indebted to Sgt. Zuker and Dan for helping them complete cases they otherwise would not have been able to solve. “Dan was one of the best police dogs I’ve ever seen,” Newsome said, adding, “of course, that is also a credit to the handler, because a dog can’t work alone. He was a great asset to the department. We all saw him as more of a co-worker, or a four-legged officer, than just an animal.”
Newsome also stated the commitment that Sgt. Zuker, and his family, undergo when becoming a handler, because Zuker takes the dog home with him everyday, and has to care for him around the clock. Additionally, Zuker is essentially always on call because of his status as the handler of the only police dog in the county.
“Other agencies can call upon Jon when they need him, and the Cedartown Police Department supports him in helping other agencies,” Newsome said. The Cedartown Police Department is also planning a memorial for Dan to be held sometime next week, but details are still sketchy at this point.  In the meantime, Newsome said that the department would now move forward in replacing Dan, a task that while not easy, must be done. “It’s just like replacing any other officer,” Newsome said. “We’ve got to replace him, and we will replace him very soon.”                            submitted by Jim Cortina, Dir. CPWDA

In Loving Memory of
K9 DUSTY
May 24, 2009
Handler: Detective Sgt.Chris Caldwell
Radford Police Department
104 Polk St,
Radford, VA
Tel: 540-731-3688

 Retired Radford Police K-9 “Dusty” dies
Former Radford Police K-9 “Dusty”

A retired Radford Police Department K-9 has died. A news release from the City of Radford says “Dusty” was found dead in his kennel this past Sunday.  Dusty died from natural causes. Dusty served the department from 2002-2007.  He along with his handler Detective Dgt. Chris Caldwell, responded to hundreds of calls in Radford as well as other parts of the New River Valley. Det. Sgt. Caldwell later adopted Dusty after the K-9 retired from the police dept. Dusty was 10 years old.
 submitted by Jim Cortina, Dir. CPWDA

In Loving Memory of
K9 DIGGER
March 26, 2009

Handler: Sgt. Wendy Kipple
Dillon Police Department
 PO Box 335- 275 Lake Dillon Drive
 970-468-6078   Fax:  970-262-3410
by E-mail: dillonpd@ci.dillon.co.us
Dillon, CO  80435

DILLON —Digger, the “super nose,” could sniff out anything — from a motorcycle gang’s meth stash to a lost woman with Alzheimer’s disease — and he was called in for tough jobs.  Dillon’s beloved police dog joined the force in 1995 as a 5-week-old puppy — a black Labrador/short-hair German Shepherd mix adopted by Sgt. Wendy Kipple from the Summit County Animal Shelter. His original purpose was to be a cadaver dog, and his name is short for “Grave Digger.” He died from bone cancer on March 26, two years after retiring from police work, at age 14.
“Digger spent 14 years by my side both at home and at work, and losing him feels like a part of me is gone,” Kipple said. “I almost feel lost without him at my side all the time. ... Digger’s battle against cancer the last year-and-a-half was a hard-fought and valiant battle.” His right, front leg was removed after being diagnosed with cancer in late-summer 2007. Digger was given a 50 percent chance to survive the year, and a 5 percent chance of beating it. And he did. Last October he was declared free of the disease, but it was back by January, spreading to his lungs and chest. Kipple was then told he had six weeks to live. Once again, Digger defied the odds and made it 11 weeks. “He continued to fight hard and just wouldn’t give up,” Kipple said. “Some tell me that it was apparent to them that he was fighting so hard because of his love for me.” Even after his cancer diagnosis, Digger came to work every day, “clear up to the end.”
“He was like a distinguished gentleman,” Kipple said. “He’d lay in the foyer and greet people, paws crossed.”
And Digger didn’t like to be apart from Kipple — ever. “If I left him at home, boy would he get mad,” she said. Once he even dug up her favorite plant. “Digger thought he was a four-legged human,” Kipple said of her partner and best friend.
Marked dog
Certified for police work in 1997, Digger learned to search for evidence, people and drugs, but he wasn’t trained to bite. He worked in Summit County and across the state. As Summit County’s first certified drug dog, Kipple said he even had a “hit” out on him at one point.
“He nabbed a lot of narcotics,” she said. Kipple’s daughter also used him to sniff out her Easter eggs.
“Digger was normally mellow and relaxed,” Kipple said. “A lot of drug dogs are hyper. He’d just walk around and sniff, do an easy scratch. Everybody liked him.”
Articles about Digger fill a thick file that sits on Kipple’s desk — Summit Daily articles, newsletters, glossy photos. He visited numerous schools over the years and participated in police demonstrations.  “I’ve had hundreds of condolences,” Kipple said.              
 “He was a special dog. People thought a lot of him.”  Caitlin Row can be reached
at (970) 668-4633 or at crow@summitdaily.com.  By Caitlin Row  summit daily news Summit County, Colorado 
  submitted by Jim Cortina, Dir. CPWDA

In Loving Memory of
K9 DOLLAR
October 15, 1999 - Died March 3, 2009 - Burial March 6, 2009

Handler:  Sgt. Bobby Gibson
Smyrna Tennessee Police Department
120 East Enon Springs Road,
Smyrna TN 37167   615.459-6644

"K9 Dollar", a German Shepherd, served the Town of Smyrna as a K-9 Officer for over 10 years, and it is with a great deal of respect and admiration that we gratefully acknowledge the service he provided, and the honor he brought the Department. He will be missed. Smyrna has two officers dedicated to the Canine Unit, and two canine officers that serve the department. Officers Bobby Gibson and Dollar & Officers Gary Schoon and Roban.Dollar and Roban are trained in the detection of illegal narcotics and are very efficient at discovering hidden drugs on suspects, vehicles and other locations.
&
Smyrna Police Department K-9 Dollar died of cancer Wednesday. Dollar was in service for the police department from October 1999, said Capt. Todd Spearman. His handler was Sgt. Bobby Gibson. Gibson and Dollar were involved over 10 years in drug searches and seizures that assisted not only the Smyrna Police Department but numerous surrounding agencies. Dollar also assisted in suspect tracking and was often the star attraction in community relations for the department. The department will hold a memorial service at 2 p.m. Friday at Smyrna Fire Hall Station 1 on Enon Springs where he will be buried. Dollar will be laid to rest next to former K-9’s Ariel and Justice. “We wish to offer a special thanks to Woodfin’s (funeral home) for their assistance in donating a casket,” Spearman said.
submitted by  Sgt. Upchurch - Sgt. johnbup@bellsouth.net & Jim Cortina, Dir. CPWDA

In Loving Memory of
K9 DOOGIE ( ARSON K9)
 January 2009

 Handler: Olathe Fire Marshal Brad Henson
Olathe Fire Department
 Kansas
Website - http://www.olatheks.org/Fire/Stations

Doogie, Olathe’s arson dog, leaves a void 
Arson dogs are tools, firefighters say, and Doogie the chocolate Lab was solid as steel. He sniffed for accelerants for almost nine years, working more than 200 area fires without injury or illness. But arson dogs are more than tools. They form bonds with their human trainers and touch emotions. When Doogie died suddenly last month, Olathe Fire Marshal Brad Henson held the dog’s paw and sobbed. They had been together, at home and at work, since 2000.
Henson feels as if a family member died, he says, and fire departments no longer have the services of one of the few arson dogs in the area. Doogie also had worked for federal authorities in the $5 million Schutte Lumber fire in 2003. Last week, Kansas City, Kan., firefighters wanted him to work a fire there, Henson said. “It’s hard to tell people that Doogie is not available,” Henson said. But a replacement may come soon. Henson is training a younger member of his canine family, a dog that detects explosives, to sniff accelerants.
 Doogie was Henson’s first working dog. He recently told how he and his wife became family for three large fire dogs. In the spring of 2000, Henson and Doogie met and bonded in a five-week training program in rural Maine. They live together in a dorm room within a community for retired nuns and Catholic educators. There was one room with a TV that all shared, and no cable. Doogie had been rescued from a pound, and Henson didn’t know what to expect. He never had many dogs as a kid, but after getting interested in them as part of his training he applied for the department to the State Farm Insurance arson dog project. It provided a trained dog for free and paid for Henson’s travel and room and board during the training. The company has sponsored more than 250 arson dogs and handlers in 16 years, but experts say arson dogs are still far rarer than bomb dogs or attack dogs. In the metropolitan area, the Kansas City police have one, as do the Overland Park Fire Department and the South Metropolitan Fire Protection District in Cass County. Even as a rookie, Doogie took to the food-training technique and was soon a star. He got fed directly from Henson’s hand only after the dog sniffed an accelerant and signaled by sitting down. Once every day, Henson poured a small amount of accelerant somewhere, let Doogie find it and then fed him. The friendly dog hammed himself onto an insurance company promotional video before they left their Maine training ground. Then they boarded an airplane and Henson was amazed at his first flight with this unflappable dog." He got the window seat,” said Henson, 43. “The stewardess gave him ice water. He got wings from the pilot.” Soon Doogie was being a pal to Henson and his wife, Leisa, in one life, and he was working charred ruins in another. Doogie had a home collar and a work collar, Henson said. “When I grabbed that one collar, he knew it was time to get to work.” Arson dogs can detect minute traces of accelerants at fire scenes, which saves firefighters time and money in collecting and testing samples. For 2007, national fire experts reported $733 million in property losses from arson, and State Farm Insurance says its dog program is intended to help reduce that. Only four of eight dogs the insurance company trained for Missouri agencies are still active, a company spokesman said, and all six dogs it trained for Kansas have now retired or died. The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives also has a training program that has put out 488 bomb dogs and 188 arson dogs since 1991. Arson dogs are rare, an ATF spokesman said, and the bureau has about four of them in all of Missouri and Kansas.
 submitted by Jim Cortina, Dir. CPWDA

In Loving Memory of
K9 DUC 
January 2009
Handler: Officer Greg Brothers
Gillette Police Department
201 E. 5th St. - P.O. Box 3003
Gilette, WY  82717
Ph: 307-682-5155 - Fax: 307-686-0396  email:lenf@ci.gillette.wy.us
 http://www.ci.gillette.wy.us/le/pd.html
Police dog dies
 For more than six years, he helped take a bite out of crime. Specializing in narcotics, he seemed to have a nose for sniffing out a stash of dope. Instead of a bump in rank, he was rewarded with belly rubs. Duc the police dog was euthanized earlier this month after a veterinarian discovered a ruptured tumor on his heart. “He basically was bleeding internally,” said Officer Greg Brothers, the dog’s handler. “He was suffering.” The 9-year-old Belgian malinois had been retired for a year and a half …#8221; well, semiretired. Brothers still used him for school demonstrations. Unlike most canines, Duc (pronounced Duke) was very people friendly. After a demonstration, he often would lie on his back and let the children rub his belly. At night, he curled up alongside Brothers’ son. “He thrived around people,” Brothers said. Duc was a dual-purpose police dog, meaning he worked in both narcotics and patrol. He excelled at both, finding 70 pounds of marijuana in his first drug bust. Even as he aged, he never lost his touch.
In his last year with the force, he cornered a man at Attitudes who was seen holding an air tank. When police arrived, they heard a woman screaming, “Don’t kill me,” Brothers said. Duc ran into the bar and began snarling and barking. “As soon as he saw Duc, he surrendered,” Brothers said. But the years of hard work eventually took their toll. When Duc retired, he had arthritis in one of his paws and several joints. He also had a bad back, which he hurt during a training exercise. After retiring, Duc lived the easy life at Brothers’ home. The transition, though, wasn’t easy. Duc would wine when he saw his replacement, Eddy, leave for work with Brothers. “That broke my wife’s heart,” he said. The decision to put him down was even more heart-wrenching. Duc’s death was like losing a family member. “You spend more time with them than any other person in the world,” Brothers said. A friend and a companion, an officer has fallen.  Duc’s name was French, though he was imported from the Netherlands. Officers often used the English spelling …#8221; Duke …#8221; in police reports.
Before joining the Gillette Police Department, Duc was trained by Cpl. Randy Parker of the Campbell County Sheriff’s Office.  A canine’s life expectancy is 10 to 12 years. Their police career typically lasts five to seven years before their bodies begin to slow down. “These dogs are far more active than a regular house pet,” Officer Greg Brothers said, comparing the dogs to professional athletes.
submitted by Jim Cortina, Dir. CPWDA

In Loving Memory of
K9 DINO
February 2009

Handler: David Rosenbaum, Jr.
 Meridian Police Department
2415 6th St
Meridian, MI   39301
(601)485-1893
 Farewell to a loyal friend - Memorial service held for K-9 partner 2/21/09 Mississippi
 Chief Benny DuBose presents Lauderdale County Sheriff's Deputy David Rosenbaum, Jr. with an American Flag in remembrance of Dino, Rosenbaum's K-9 partner who recently died of cancer. The memorial ceremony was held Friday afternoon in Dumont Plaza in downtown Meridian and was attended by various law enforcement agencies, their officers, other K-9 teams and family and friends. It is almost impossible to describe the bond a law enforcement officer has with his K-9 partner. They are inseparable in many ways because they've trained together, been side-by-side on dangerous streets, and inside foreboding buildings looking for criminals. They have shared the same home and family. And they have shared the dark times as well. David Rosenbaum, Jr. and Dino were one of those dynamic duos during their service with the Meridian Police Department. When Rosenbaum left the MPD to become a deputy sheriff for Lauderdale County after three years of serving alongside Dino, it was a decision he almost couldn't make. "It was very, very hard to leave Dino there," said Rosenbaum Friday afternoon. "But when the opportunity came to take him back when he retired I jumped at the chance." And so did Dino. But a week ago Dino was put to sleep after he was diagnosed with cancer. The disease had infiltrated his spleen, liver and spine. Rosenbaum couldn't stand seeing his friend in such pain so the excruciating decision was made to put him at ease after only three years of retirement. A memorial service at Dumont Plaza in downtown Meridian was held Friday afternoon in honor of Dino. In attendance were law enforcement officers from agencies in Lauderdale County and several K-9 teams as well as family and friends of the Rosenbaums. Rosenbaum's 10-year old son, Taylor, bravely stood up to the podium with a picture of Dino down below him. He said everyone there probably had a memory regarding Dino. "He was my best friend," said Taylor Rosenbaum. "I will never forget the things we've done together and how happy he used to make me feel."  Dino was a Belgian Malanois. He was 11 when he died but he was able to give the MPD seven years of exemplary service. In those years he spent with David Rosenbaum and another handler, Dino was credited with scores of illegal drug cases, criminal apprehensions and episodes of protecting his handler. "In many ways Dino had more respect from the people we came in contact with than I did," said Rosenbaum. "He was very loud and seemed aggressive but deep down he was just a little kid."  Asked if he'd ever want to be a handler again, Rosenbaum afforded himself a long pause. "A part of me would like to but then again I couldn't go through this again," he said finally. It takes a lot to bring tears to a large law enforcement officer but time and again the loss of a partner, especially one who would without question give his life so that his handler would live, brings out the biggest hearts. It was that way in 1998 when Rosenbaum and Dino first began training together and it was on this occasion when Rosenbaum said goodbye to his partner and friend. submitted by Jim Cortina, Dir. CPWDA
DIED - LAST WEEK ( EUTHANIZED ) ( CANCER OF SPLEEN, LIVER & SPINE)