SAGINAW, Mich. (WNEM) – Which police unit is highly-skilled in finding narcotics and bombs, tracing the location of missing people and stopping fleeing criminals? The answer is K9s.
K9 Hero Guardians, formerly the Saginaw Valley Police Canine Association, provide support and funding to both active and retired K9s.
The nonprofit spent Saturday at Johnson’s Pumpkin Farm in Saginaw for “Safety Day.” Families can meet with their local law enforcement agencies and first responders to learn more about what they do.
“A lot of the events that we do, the police dogs are the favorite attraction,” said Jody Wilk, president of K9 Hero Guardians. “When a dog retires from the police department, it’s up to the handler to pay all medical bills and that can get very pricey. So, our donations help cover that. With the active dogs, we also help with medical, training, equipment. We’ve also donated several dogs in this region.”
Officer Doug Stacer with the Buena Vista Police Department has been working with his K9, Nvee, for several years now.
“It’s a lot of training, a lot of maintenance, a lot of responsibility, but the nice thing about it is you always have your partner with you. It’s going to be hard to give up when he retires here probably shortly,” said Stacer.”
He says almost every handler in the region becomes the full-time caretaker for their K9 once they retire to “house dog” status. Until then, Nvee lives the life of a cop.
“He’s chill at home, but as soon as I start getting dressed, he knows it’s time for work and he loves his job,” said Stacer.
He wants to people to know the key to not being afraid of these dogs is understanding them.
“Just realize that our working dogs are different from our pets,” said Stacer. “Ask [to pet them] before you come up to us. When we’re working, our dogs there to protect us.”
Wilk adds most K9s you’ll meet out in public, at family-friendly events and places like Johnson’s Pumpkin Farm, are approachable—but always their handler first.
“They know when it’s time to work, when mom or dad are getting their uniform on and ready to go to work, but then when they’re at events like this, they know it’s a public relations-type event and they’re approachable at that point,” said Wilk.
One thing K9 Hero Guardians is always in need of is donations. Honoring their fallen K9s is another big purpose of the organization. Donations allow them to provide memorials for K9s like Canjo, their former ambassador who died from health issues two years after retirement.
“A lot of K9 programs, especially in this region, are donation funded,” said Wilk. “[K9s] are super important and great assets to the community, but vet bills can get expensive. Within our program, we have the K9 Canjo memorial fund. We are definitely promoting the health of the dogs. We pay for back x-rays partway through the working career, because we want to take a look. These working dogs will not show pain.”
K9 Hero Guardians will travel next to Scarecrow Fest in Frankenmuth, Oct. 26-27 and the Novi Pet Expo, Dec. 13-15.
“Working in the communities that we do; our dog really helps us a lot,” said Stacer. “It helps keep their community safe.”
To learn more about K9 Hero Guardians and where you can find them, visit their Facebook page.
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