The Santa Clara Police Department (SCPD) celebrated the retirement of two of its K-9 officers this month.
Brek, an 8-year-old German Shepard, and Chip, a five-year-old German Shepard have both earned the time off after working tirelessly to keep their handlers and communities safe.
Both K-9 officers worked closely with Officer Ogg.
Brek has specialized training in explosive detection, and Chip has specialized training in tracking suspects and apprehension. These skills have allowed them to work with K-9 Units throughout the region, as well as Santa Clara’s Federal partners.
The K-9 officers have also performed dignitary sweeps for the Secretary of the Army, Secretary of the Air Force, Chief of Space Operations, Joint Chiefs, Director of National Intelligence, Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia, President of Taiwan, Australian Defense Minister, Congresswoman Eshoo, and more.
However, Officer Ogg’s favorite times with the K-9 officers were the community meet and greets and demonstrations, with the most memorable event being Super Bowl 50 at Levi’s Stadium.
So, what happens to the dogs in retirement? People retire because of age, injury, and fatigue. This is true for police dogs as well. K-9’s work extremely hard their whole life, so they generally retire between the ages of seven and 11.
Most retired police dogs were euthanized before President Bill Clinton ended the practice by signing Robby’s Law in 2000, which allows retired police and military dogs to be adopted by their handlers or other service members.
The bond Officer Ogg has with Brek and Chip is inseparable. So, they will spend the rest of their lives with the Oggs in their home with the kids and a family. Like most dogs, they love playtime, especially fetch and tug-o-war. They also love to sunbathe by the pool.
Even though the dogs will be in retirement, Officer Ogg will continue his service to the City of Santa Clara.
While Brek and Chip retired, SCPD also welcomed a new K-9 officer to the force.
Maxx is a 28-month-old, male Belgian Malinois in training with Officer Cesar Rodriguez for tracking, apprehension and narcotics detection. He loves swimming and going for long walks. His favorite treats are pig ears and bully sticks. Maxx joins SCPD’s other K-9 Officers – Ozzy, Tank and Kairo.
Officer Rodriguez has been with SCPD for four years. He loves serving this community, and in his spare time likes to go camping and wakeboarding and plays slow pitch softball.
Maxx’s purchase was made possible by the Sean M. Walsh K-9 Memorial Foundation. The Foundation was established on the dream of California National Guard Military Police Specialist – Sean M. Walsh.
Sean aspired to be a police officer and dreamt of being a K-9 handler. He was not able to live his dream. He died while serving in Afghanistan at only 21-years old.
Prior to joining the National Guard, Sean was a Police Explorer with the Santa Clara Police Department. After his passing, Sean’s mother started the Foundation which provides grants for police dogs, training and equipment.
For more information about the Sean M. Walsh K-9 Memorial Foundation, log onto http://seansk9s.com/.
View Comments (2)
Police dogs were not euthanized before President Clinton. Military dogs were often euthanized, or left overseas until a law was passed during the Clinton Administration to try to find homes for retired military dogs. Police dogs have always lived out the remainder of their lives as pets in the homes of their handler.
Congratulations on your retirement