Memorials to Fallen K-9s
2002
page
15
The
F.A.S.T. Co. donates 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
In Loving Memory
of
K-9
RIO
June
25, 2002
Partner:SPO
Christopher Mahlstadt
Des
Moines Police Dept. IA
Narcotics
Unit - #25 East First Street
Des
Moines, Iowa 50309 - Phone: (515) 283-4824
Drug-sniffing
dog donated to police
By TOM
ALEX - Register Staff Writer - 07/25/2002
If
dogs wore shoes, Kirby would have some big ones to fill. Des Moines police
didn't think they could afford another dog for the narcotics unit after
Rio, an English springer spaniel dubbed the "$2 million dog" for his drug-sniffing
talents, died last month. So police officials in St. Paul, Minn., dispatched
Kirby, a 4-year-old male Labrador, to provide backup. "It was put out on
a Web site that Rio had to be put down, and St. Paul said they had a dog
available and they'd donate it to our department," said Des Moines police
Sgt. David Brown. Officer Chris Mahlstadt, who was Rio's partner in the
local drug wars, said Des Moines has had a good relationship with St. Paul.
A dollar changed hands, & Kirby changed departments. Like Rio, Kirby
was rescued from a dog pound and trained in detection of illegal drugs.
Rio was trained by a Minnetonka, MN, police officer. He joined the Des
Moines force in July 1994. On his 10th day on the job, Rio found
$119,000 worth of marijuana, said Mahlstadt. Rio was nearly 10 years old.
During his eight years in the department, he was credited with about $2
million worth of illegal drug seizures and won several trophies in competitive
trials. He had an operation for a cancerous growth last winter and appeared
to be doing well. Officers said he suddenly stopped eating, his weight
dropped, and he appeared to be in pain. He died June 25. Officer
Warren Steinkamp said of Kirby, "He's full of energy, and he loves to work."
"It's nice to have (a dog) assigned to the narcotics unit," Brown said.
|
. |
Drug
dog with millions in busts dies
By TOM
ALEX Register Staff Writer 06/26/2002
Rio,
the Des Moines Police Department's "$2 million drug dog", died Tuesday.
Sgt. David Brown of the vice and narcotics section said, I've had a lot
of tough assignments in the past but I've never had to put one of my subordinates
to sleep before." Rio, an English Springer Spaniel, was nearly 10 years
old. He had an operation for a cancerous growth last winter and appeared
to be doing well until recently. Officers said he had nearly quit eating,
his weight had dropped and he appeared to be in pain. A pound puppy recruited
from a Minnesota animal shelter because of his interest in tennis balls,
Rio was trained by a Minnetonka, MN, police officer. He joined the Des
Moines force in July 1994. On his 10th day on the job, Rio found $119,000
worth of marijuana, said his long-time handler Chris Mahlstadt. Drug dogs
commonly are rewarded for their work by being allowed to play with a favorite
toy. As a puppy at the pound in Minnesota, Rio showed intense interest
in a tennis ball when an officer came in search of high-spirited animals
to train.During his eight years in the department, Rio was credited with
about $2 million worth of illegal drugs and won several trophies in competitive
police trials, Mahlstadt said. "He was a very nice dog," said Brown. "He
liked the bad guys and well as the good guys." Rio is the last of his kind
on the department, at least for now. Brown said the department's three
dogs are cross-trained in drug detection and will take over Rio's duties.
Oby, the department's other easy-going drug-sniffing dog, died last fall.
He was retired in 1996 after six years on the force. Rio will be buried
next to Oby
in a pet cemetery south of the city. erd male by the name of Zaire, who
remained the partner of Deputy Andy Thomas for approximately one year,
until the time he was promoted into the Detective Division.
cards
mailed 7-10
Officer
Mahlstadt received cards...
said
they are beatiful~! Tnx..and best of luck with another partner.
|
In Loving Memory
of
K-9
DASTY
June
10, 2002
Partner:
Officer
Nick
Henderson
Evansville
Police Dept. IN
K-9
Unit
Special
Operations Platoon - K-9 Unit
15 New
MLK Jr. Blvd. Evansville, IN 47708
812-436-7948
called and left message 7/3/02
cards
mailed 7/8/02
Heard
from another source.....
OFFICER
NICK HENDERSON NOW HAS A NEW DOG,
A 17
MONTH OLD GERMAN SHEPHERD NAMED REX.
NICK
IS GOING TO EMAIL
SOME
PICS OF REX WHEN HE GETS A CHANCE .
8/26/02
no further news
Officer
mourns K-9 'partner
'By
JOE ATKINSON Courier & Press staff writer June 18, 2002
Evansville
police officer Nick Henderson didn't think
anything
of it when his K-9 partner, Dasty, got hurt during a chase earlier this
month. The dog was going over a fence while chasing a fugitive, and he
came down on his belly,
eliciting
a loud yelp. Dasty then got up and continued his chase. "He'd fallen and
hurt himself plenty of times before," Henderson said. Less than a week
later, Dasty, a decorated police dog and Henderson's partner, died of complications
from that fall. The fence had punctured his bladder, causing an initial
discomfort that doctors couldn't identify. By the time they could, it was
too late. The loss hit Henderson hard. The officer, who recently was named
the department's police officer of the year, had ridden the night shift
with Dasty for more than three years, during which time the dog lived with
Henderson's family. Everybody has come up to me and said, 'Sorry for the
loss of your dog,' but it was a lot more than that," he said. "He was my
partner for three years; I drove around in my car with him for eight hours
a night, then I'd take him home at night and feed him, and I'd wake up
that afternoon, (and) my little boy would be outside with him, just throwing
a stick and playing ball." (continue--->)
|
|
The
whole family has taken Dasty's death to heart, Henderson said. But none
has taken it harder than the dog's partner, who described his best experiences
on the force as those where he worked with Dasty. A particular highlight,
he said, came when the duo was awarded one of their three "Catch of the
Quarter" awards from the United States Police Canine Association for capturing
a suspect barricaded in a Washington, Ind., home. "(The man) ran inside
and said he wasn't going back to jail, and he was taking someone with him,"
Henderson said. "Dasty went in and searched the house and found that the
guy had climbed over a wall and buried himself in the insulation; Dasty
drug him out by the arm so we could see his hands and see that he was unarmed
and arrest him." In his five years on the force, Dasty found and seized
more than $275,000 in illegal drugs and currency and won several awards
in USPCA trials. Now that Dasty is gone, Henderson said he expects to continue
working in the K-9 department of the police force. "The hard part's going
to be going to work and driving around without my partner; it's going to
be an awfully lonely 8-hour shift."
Dasty's
awards
Nick with new partner,
REX
|
In Loving Memory
of
K-9
ARGUS
Dog
#596
June
29 2002
Partner
Constable Brian Moss
Burnaby
Royal Canadian Mounted Police
address?
photo? wrote to newspaper -
8/25/02
no further info available.
Canada
|
Argus
the police dog passes away
By Patrisha
de Leon-Manlagnit
Burnaby
RCMP are mourning the loss of one of their own after a police dog died
last Saturday. Argus, Police Service Dog #596, passed away after he was
rushed to a
veterinary
hospital when his partner, Const. Brian Moss, found him lying on his kennel
floor. Argus worked with Moss on the Burnaby dog unit for the last 18 months
during which time the canine tracked down many criminals. Born in Quebec,
Argus was introduced to Moss in April 2000 and was a big part of the officer's
family. The dog was especially loved by Moss' two young sons. Moss describes
Argus as a loving and very sociable dog whose greatest
love
outside of police work was swimming. "If Argus wasn't a dog, he would have
been a fish," Moss said.
|
In Loving Memory
of
K-9
NIKKI
November
9, 2002
Officer
Tim Tonsor
High
Point Police Department NC
1009
Leonard Avenue
High
Point, North Carolina 27260-5321
|
Nikki
was Tim's second dog, a Beuceron, looked like a Doberman on steroids.
Nikki was a great dog and about four to five years into his K-9 work, he
developed cancer of the jaw and had to have surgery which caused him to
be retired, he couldn't bite that hard any more. Tim kept him at
home after that. Nick as I called him, was a phenomenal tracker.
I think he went through his career with about a 50% tracking success, which
is very, very high.
|
In Loving Memory
of
K-9
BULLET
August
xx , 1994
Officer
Tim Tonsor
High
Point Police Department NC
1009
Leonard Avenue
High
Point, North Carolina 27260-5321
|
Tim
Tonsor, our canine trainer, lost his first dog, "Bullet", in August of
1994. Tim and "Bullet" were working one night during a heavy rain
storm and Tim wanted to let "Bullet" get some exercise and to take a "break".
They went to one of our elevated parking decks. Tim let "Bullet"
out and while he was running around the parking deck, he all of a sudden
and without warning jumped up and over the retaining wall that surrounds
the deck. He fell 35 feet, breaking his spine. Within an hour,
Tim had to have "Bullet" put to sleep because there was nothing that the
Vet could do for him. The officers still thinks a lot about "Bullet." Everytime
we bring up 'old dogs' it would be nice for Tim to have the site to look
back on in future years. I could get a picture from Tim and I'm sure that
if I bugged him enough, he would write a few words about "Bullet."
We all still remember good old "Bullet" to this day. He was like
a male version of Tasja.
Bullets
information and also his other K-9 Nikki who died November 9, 2002.
Nikki was retired and Tim's wife found him dead in the yard when she went
to feed him that day. So I will let you know about that. Tim
no longer works for our department. He quit December 16, 2002 to
take a job in the private sector training dogs. He moved to Knoxville,
TN, and lives in a condo there. I talk to him via e-mail about once
a week. The last information is that I retired February 1, 2003 from
full-time police work after almost 31 years, the last 24 plus with High
Point.
|
Continue
to Page 16 of 2002 K-9 Memorials
Return
to K-9 Data
Return
to Page 14 of 2002 K-9 Memorials
|